The United States compelled Iran, "Tehran was below the cloud before the "accident happened"...understand?
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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| US compels Iran to release seized sail drones |
| 2022-09-03 |
| [Jpost] Iran has been building up its naval presence in the Red Sea, near the coast of Yemen where Tehran backs the Houthi movement. The United States compelled Iran for a second time this week to release US military sail drones that it tried to seize at sea, US officials said on Friday. The incident there, after an earlier one in the Gulf, was the latest reminder of US-Iran military tensions, even as both countries pursue nuclear talks. They follow exchanges of fire last week between US troops and Iran-backed groups in Syria. Iran state television earlier on Friday acknowledged the Iranian Navy released two US maritime drones in the Red Sea but accused the American unmanned vessels of jeopardizing maritime safety, without providing evidence. "The (Iranian navy) frigate Jamaran seized the two vessels on Thursday to prevent any possible accident after issuing warnings to the US fleet. After international shipping lanes were secured, the two vessels were released in a safe area," the TV said. The US Navy, in a statement, challenged that account, saying the drones were in an assigned patrol area at least four nautical miles from the nearest maritime traffic lane. "The vessels posed no risk to naval traffic and had been operating in the general vicinity of the Southern Red Sea for more than 200 consecutive days without incident," the Navy statement said. A US defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, suggested the Iranians sought to secretly seize the drones, pulling the sail drones completely out of the water on Thursday and then covering them with tarps. Iran initially denied having any US property before returning them on Friday to the US warships that converged on the scene, a US official said. Iranian television footage aired on Friday appeared to show more than a dozen Iranian navy personnel pushing two drones into the sea from the deck of their vessel. The Navy statement said the US Navy guided-missile destroyers USS Nitze and USS Delbert D. Black stayed near the Iranian warship, communicating with it "to deescalate the situation and recover the seized Saildrones." The Iranian warship released the drones in the morning on Sept. 2, the US Navy said. On Tuesday, the US Navy said it foiled an attempt by Iran's Revolutionary Guards naval forces to capture an unmanned surface vessel operated by the US 5th Fleet in the Gulf. Iran said the drone was a danger to maritime traffic. MARITIME TENSIONS Iran has repeatedly warned the United States about its military activities in the Gulf, saying that the Guards' naval forces have increased patrols to secure the passage of Iranian ships and combat fuel smuggling. The US military, meanwhile, has expanded its use of sea-based drones in the region. It is unclear if Iran might be seizing the US drones in an attempt to copy them. Some of Iran's drones are based on unmanned aircraft from other countries, and it tried to copy an aerial US RQ-170 Sentinel reconnaissance drone captured in 2011. Iran and the regional forces it backs have increasingly relied in recent years on drones in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. US officials say Iran is supplying drones to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine, which Tehran has denied. |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #13 The United States compelled Iran, "Tehran was below the cloud before the "accident happened"...understand? |
| Posted by: Gloluse Bucket1658 2022-09-03 21:59 |
| #12 See the wireless antenna on the sail? Pictures sent to 'the cloud'. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2022-09-03 20:26 |
| #11 So, practice for "hunting over bait?" |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-09-03 20:14 |
| #10 Why are photos not digitally stored somewhere other than the drone? |
| Posted by: Airandee 2022-09-03 19:36 |
| #9 "unclassified photos of the surrounding environment" ... waves? So the Iranians swiped the cameras. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2022-09-03 18:59 |
| #8 Also this, just posted on the Times of Israel site: A pair of American naval drones that were briefly seized Friday by Iranian forces in the Red Sea were returned with their cameras missing, a US official said. The Iranian sailors initially tried to cover the drones with tarps and deny they had them, added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss unpublicized details about the seizure. According to a Wall Street Journal report, it was unclear if the Iranians took the cameras or if they fell off when the drones were removed from the water and later put back in. The US Navy’s Mideast-based 5th Fleet identified the seized drones as Saildrone Explorers. Those drones are commercially available and used by a variety of clients, including scientists, to monitor open waters. “The unmanned surface vessels were unarmed and taking unclassified photos of the surrounding environment while loitering in an assigned patrol area at least 4 nautical miles from the nearest maritime traffic lane,” the 5th Fleet said. “The vessels posed no risk to naval traffic and had been operating in the general vicinity of the Southern Red Sea for more than 200 consecutive days without incident.” The Navy’s guided-missile destroyers USS Nitze and USS Delbert D. Black responded to the seizure at 2 p.m. Thursday and each deployed MH-60 SeaHawk helicopters, the 5th Fleet said. Iran ultimately released the drones at 8 a.m. Friday. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2022-09-03 13:18 |
#7 From Skidmark’s The Drive link:
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| Posted by: trailing wife 2022-09-03 13:13 |
| #6 Crazy how we just keep losing unmanned vehicles to Iran. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2022-09-03 12:25 |
| #5 designed to be....captured Oh. OHH! |
| Posted by: Dron66046 2022-09-03 08:40 |
| #4 ^ Yes. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2022-09-03 07:42 |
| #3 /\ Perhaps the unmanned craft were designed to be....captured ? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2022-09-03 07:40 |
| #2 Iran Briefly Seized Two U.S. Navy Unmanned Sailboats In The Red Sea (Updated) |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2022-09-03 07:38 |
| #1 Saildrone: Any Sensor, Anytime, Anywhere. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2022-09-03 05:37 |