Iranian Warships Repel Pirates’ Attacks on 2 Oil Tankers in High Seas
The pirates came back with 5 speed boats to attack another Iranian oil tanker, but they fled the scene after the Iranian warships approached the oil tanker.
The Iranian Navy’s 33rd flotilla of warships, which is comprised of martyr vice-admiral Naqdi destroyer and Bandar Abbas logistic warship for intelligence-gathering, operational and training missions, left Bandar Abbas port in Southern Iran for the Gulf of Aden late last month to protect the country’s cargo ships and oil tankers against pirates.
The Iranian Navy’s 32nd flotilla of warships ended its mission in the Gulf of Aden, and returned home mid January after thwarting 5 pirate attacks on the country’s oil tankers and cargo ships.
The 32nd flotilla, consisting of Jamaran and Bushehr destroyers, returned to Iran after 80 days of missions in the Sea of Oman, North of the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Aden, Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea.
The Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008, when Somali raiders hijacked the Iranian-chartered cargo ship, MV Delight, off the coast of Yemen.
According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia against the pirates and even with prior notice to Somali government enter the territorial waters of that country in pursuit of Somali sea pirates.
The Gulf of Aden – which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea – is an important energy corridor, particularly because Persian Gulf oil is shipped to the West via the Suez Canal.
