Iranian General: Stories on Oman Sea Insecurity Setting Stage for New Adventurism

In comments on Wednesday, Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi dismissed the media stories invented by a number of Zionist, Western and Saudi news agencies about maritime insecurity in the Sea of Oman.

“The contradictory reports from some Western, Zionist and Saudi media about any case of maritime insecurity, hijacking of vessels, etc, in regional waters are part of a psychological operation preparing the ground for new adventurism,” the general warned.

He also said that the Iranian Armed Forces are contributing to the safe navigation of trade vessels in the region, have full intelligence dominance over every suspicious move, and are completely prepared.

General Shekarchi added that the Iranian naval forces from the Army and the IRGC are ready to provide the foreign vessels with any assistance at their request and when necessary and to deploy rescue teams for help.

The comments came after the UK sources reported the “potential hijack” of a British vessel off the coast of the United Arab Emirates’ Fujairah region.

British authorities claimed that the Panama-flagged Asphalt Princess oil tanker had been hijacked, and said they were “working on the assumption Iranian military or proxies boarded the vessel” in the Gulf of Oman.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh has categorically rejected as “untrue” the reports circulated by Western and Israeli media about the involvement of Iran’s Armed Forces in the incident.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman also called on all parties to be vigilant against the spread of fake news, given the contradictory news about maritime security in the region.