Iranian Navy thwarts pirate attack on Saudi oil tanker in Int'l waters

An attempted hijack of a Saudi oil tanker by unknown pirate boats was foiled after an Iranian fleet of warships present in the region rushed to the scene. "After the regional center of Chabahar coast guard watch announced last night that a Saudi oil tanker had asked for help due to the suspicious approach of several unknown boats, Jamaran destroyer was dispatched to the area swiftly," Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Seyed Mahmoud Moussavi told reporters on Monday. "After the presence of the destroyer (on the scene), the unknown boats fled the area and the entire region came under the control (of the Iranian Navy forces)," he added. Moussavi did not mention the specific coordinates or region of the international waters that the Saudi oil tanker was saved by the Iranian destroyer, but the development has most likely taken place in the Sea of Oman where Iran is presently staging massive wargames. Iran's naval forces have deployed in the international waters of the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean after they started massive wargames in the international waters on Saturday. The naval maneuvers dubbed Velayat 90 are due to cover an area stretching from the East of the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Aden for 10 days. Jamaran was part of Iran's 16th fleet of warships which returned home last week after accomplishing a 70-day mission in the Gulf of Aden and the high seas where the Iranian warships defended the country's cargo ships and oil tankers against attacks by Somali pirates. In its 9,700-mile voyages, the Iranian flotilla provided safe passage for and monitored the missions and moves made by 1,380 military and non-military vessels and aerial vehicles. 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.