According to the U.S. Navy, Iran made an attempt to seize two oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz early Wednesday, with one of them being subjected to gunfire.
After the U.S. Navy dispatched a guided missile destroyer to the location, the Iranian naval vessels retreated in both instances, allowing the commercial ships to continue their voyages unharmed.
Cmdr. Tim Hawkins, spokesperson for the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, stated, “The Iranian navy did make attempts to seize commercial tankers lawfully transiting international waters. The U.S. Navy responded immediately and prevented those seizures.”
He clarified that the gunfire aimed at the second vessel did not result in any casualties or significant damage.
The U.S. Navy provided details of the events, beginning with an Iranian naval vessel approaching the TRF Moss, flagged by the Marshall Islands, in the Gulf of Oman around 1 a.m. In response, the U.S. deployed the USS McFaul, a guided-missile destroyer, accompanied by an MQ-9 Reaper drone and a P-8 Poseidon patrol plane.
Approximately three hours later, the U.S. Navy received a distress call from the Richmond Voyager, an oil tanker flying the flag of the Bahamas, located over 20 nautical miles off the coast of Muscat, the capital of Oman. The Navy reported that another Iranian naval vessel approached the tanker, closing in within a mile and ordering it to halt.
In response, the same U.S. destroyer rapidly advanced towards the tanker at maximum speed, the Navy said.
