ID :
121056
Sun, 05/09/2010 - 15:06
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/121056
The shortlink copeid
Iranian Navy saves another ship from pirate attacks
TEHRAN, May 9 (MNA) -- The Iranian Navy has foiled two attempts by pirates to hijack an Iranian commercial vessel in the Gulf of Aden.
Pirates launched two attacks on an Iranian commercial vessel during the course of Friday night, but each time they were swiftly encountered by ships of the 7th Fleet of the Navy, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said on Saturday.
The two attacks were repelled, the pirates were forced to flee, and the commercial vessel is now being escorted by the Iranian naval force in a port at the Sea of Oman, he added.
Commenting on the war games currently underway in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, Sayyari said one of the primary objectives of the military maneuvers is to guarantee the safety of Iranian merchant ships and oil tankers in the Gulf of Aden.
On Friday night, that test was put to practice and the Iranian naval force emerged victorious, he noted.
The eight-day maneuver, entitled Velayat-89, started on Wednesday, covering a span of about 250,000 square kilometers from the Strait of Hormuz to the northern Indian Ocean.
Pirates operating off the coast of Somalia have expanded the reach of their hijacking attacks on merchant vessels and oil tankers in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden in recent months, making tens of millions of dollars in ransom, despite the fact that dozens of foreign naval vessels are patrolling the area.
Pirates launched two attacks on an Iranian commercial vessel during the course of Friday night, but each time they were swiftly encountered by ships of the 7th Fleet of the Navy, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said on Saturday.
The two attacks were repelled, the pirates were forced to flee, and the commercial vessel is now being escorted by the Iranian naval force in a port at the Sea of Oman, he added.
Commenting on the war games currently underway in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, Sayyari said one of the primary objectives of the military maneuvers is to guarantee the safety of Iranian merchant ships and oil tankers in the Gulf of Aden.
On Friday night, that test was put to practice and the Iranian naval force emerged victorious, he noted.
The eight-day maneuver, entitled Velayat-89, started on Wednesday, covering a span of about 250,000 square kilometers from the Strait of Hormuz to the northern Indian Ocean.
Pirates operating off the coast of Somalia have expanded the reach of their hijacking attacks on merchant vessels and oil tankers in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden in recent months, making tens of millions of dollars in ransom, despite the fact that dozens of foreign naval vessels are patrolling the area.
