Iran Focus: London, Jan. 09 The United States Department of Defence released on Tuesday an audiotape and video footage of Iranian gunboats displaying hostile behaviour towards three U.S. Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran Focus
London, Jan. 09 The United States Department of Defence released on Tuesday an audiotape and video footage of Iranian gunboats displaying hostile behaviour towards three U.S. Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The incident which occurred on Sunday nearly led to an exchange of fire on the 50-kilometre-wide entrance to the Persian Gulf through which about two-fifths of the world’s oil supplies pass.
The Pentagon has said the Iranian speedboats aggressively approached the three U.S. ships and threatened that the ships would explode.
U.S. President George W. Bush described the Iranian actions as “provocative” and “dangerous”.
“They should not have done it, pure and simple. … I don’t know what their thinking was, but I’m telling you what my thinking was. I think it was a provocative act”, Bush told reporters on Tuesday.
The four-minute video showed the Iranian boats swarming around the U.S. ships.
I am coming to you, said a heavily-accented voice. You will explode after a few minutes.
Irans Revolutionary Guards have previously described the Strait of Hormuz as the economic lifeline of the West, saying it could be used to put pressure on Tehrans enemies.