Navy Thwarts Pirate Attack on Iranian Oil Tanker

Fars News Agency
Saturday, February 25, 2012

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An attempt by pirates to hijack an Iranian oil tanker North of a strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden was foiled due to the timely action by the Iranian fleet of warships present in the region.

The Iranian oil tanker came under attack by 6 Somali pirate speedboats 35 miles North of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait.

The Iranian naval forces and commandos' swift action forced the pirates to flee the scene.

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 through the Suez Canal.

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