A few months after its spy ship “Savez” was allegedly attacked by Israeli forces in the Red Sea, Iran quietly replaced the ship with a similar ship to gather intelligence on strategically important waterways.
According to reports, an Iranian ship “Behshad” registered as a general cargo ship set sail from Port Abbas in early July. CNN, Quoting two U.S. officials who did not want to be named.According to the report, nine days later, the ship reached the Mande Strait, a key waterway that controls the access to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. International Imaging Satellite Corporation, An Israeli satellite and intelligence company.
Tehran then returned to Iran accompanied by two tugboats. The “Saviz” has been patrolling the Red Sea for five years until it was hit by a limpet mine off the coast of Yemen in April.
Although Iran claims that “Sawiz” is helping the Iranian commando to resist pirate attacks, Saudi-led coalition Combatants in the Yemeni civil war said that this is an intelligence-gathering ship linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and has been assisting the Houthis in Yemen. Although Jerusalem did not make an official response to the attack, Iran blamed Israel for the landmine attack.
In 2018, then-President Donald Trump sanctioned “Savez” and “Behshad” as part of his anti-Iran campaign.
According to CNN, the United States has been following the entire operation closely due to the recent maritime conflicts that have increased tensions in the region.Earlier this month, an Israeli co-owned vessel MT Mercer Street tanker Being hit In the northern Indian Ocean, Israel and the United States claimed that this was a “drone attack.” Two crew members were killed in the attack.
Although Iran denied involvement in the attack, US Israel is pushing the United Nations to take action against “Iranian terrorism.”
Last week, the situation got worse after an asphalt and asphalt tanker Asphalt Princess was allegedly hijacked in the Gulf of Oman. The United States subsequently expressed suspicion that Iran was involved in this incident.
After the incident, State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters in Washington: “We believe these people are Iranians, but we are currently unable to confirm this.”
Price said: “Iran has adopted a belligerent mode of proxy attacks in the region, and of course these maritime attacks.”
However, Iran insists that “the incidents reported in the Persian Gulf and the wider region seem completely suspicious”.
Photo: AFP/Ahraf SHAZLY
