Iranian vessels mounted with machine guns approach US warship in Strait of Hormuz
RT.com
12 Jul, 2016
In the latest escalation of tensions between Washington and Tehran, five Iranian military vessels maneuvered extremely close to a US warship carrying a top American general just six months after two US ships were detained by Iran.
The ships, which were dispatched to the Strait of Hormuz by Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Monday, came within 500 yards (457 meters) of the USS New Orleans and its escort, the USS Stout, a guided missile destroyer, according to Reuters.
The Iranian fleet consisted of four speedboats, three of which had mounted machine guns, and a guided missile patrol ship.
In the first encounter, a Houdong fast attack craft, one of the largest operated by the IRGC, passed closely by the ship, the Wall Street Journal reported. Later, the four smaller patrol craft approached the USS New Orleans as it moved through the Strait. One of the Iranian boats cut off its engine and floated past both of the US vessels as its crew filmed the sailors aboard the warships.
The USS New Orleans was carrying about 650 Marines, as well as Army General Joseph Votel, who oversees all American military forces in the Middle East.
Although US officials stressed to Reuters that such events fall within the category of professional interactions, Votel said his main concern is that “we don’t always have a lot of time to deal with those interactions…”
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