OAN’s Jessamyn Dodd
9:20 AM – Friday, July 7, 2023
Iran’s revolutionary guards have forcibly seized a commercial tanker. According to a statement from the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet on Thursday, the commercial ship was said to be allegedly smuggling 900 tons of fuel.
A spokesman said they monitored the situation and have decided not to take action.
This comes after the Navy had stopped Iran from seizing two commercial tankers in international waters earlier in the week.
Pentagon spokesman Brig. General Pat Ryder made it known that the U.S. is keeping an eye on any new developments.
“U.S. Navy central Command announced that U.S. forces prevented two attempted commercial tanker seizures by the Iranian Navy after Iranians opened fire against one of the tankers near the coast of Oman,” he said. “Additional details regarding NAVS response are available on their website. Notably, both of these incidents occurred in international waters and represent a pattern of behavior by the Iranians.”
In the meantime, officials say U.S. forces remain vigilant and are ready to protect navigational rights of lawful maritime traffic in the Middle East’s critical waters.
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