E-MAIL THIS LINK
To: 

Coast Guard cutter fires warning shot at Iranian dhow in brief altercation
The Washington Post's Pentagon journalist; the original account just a little too folksy.
A U.S. Coast Guard patrol boat got into an altercation Tuesday with an Iranian sailboat in the Persian Gulf, the Pentagon announced.

U.S. military officials said the trouble started when the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Monomoy, which regularly patrols international waters in the Gulf, approached an Iranian dhow, a traditional sailing vessel used by fisherman and traders. According to the U.S. account, the cutter dispatched a smaller boat, apparently to try to get closer to the dhow and possibly climb aboard.

The dhow was less than friendly; its crew pointed a machine gun at the visiting party. In response, the Monomoy fired a warning shot, which apparently had its desired effect. The dhow sailed off, the cutter retrieved its personnel from the small boat and went its own way.
From personal experience, the Iranians use dhows much like the Soviets used fishing boats - as intelligence gathering platforms. Also from personal experience, smuggling from Iran to the various Arab emirates is a long and historic tradition.
Coast Guard patrol boats have performed maritime security operations in the Gulf since 2003 and can board suspicious vessels. The 110-foot cutters complement larger U.S. Navy ships in the region. The Monomoy generated headlines in January 2012 when it rescued six Iranian fishermen.
Posted by: Pappy 2014-08-27
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=398656