Iranian Navy warships rescued two cargo ships in Bab el-Mendeb and the Gulf of Aden after tough battles with pirates in the high seas.
In the first battle, the timely presence and action of the Iranian Navy’s 31st Flotilla thwarted an attack by eight pirate speed boats, equipped with various light and semi-heavy weapons, on a cargo ship in the Northern waters of Bab el-Mendeb, forcing the pirates to flee the scene.
In the second rescue mission, the Iranian warships also thwarted a similar attack by six pirate boats on another ship in the Gulf of Aden and also forced the pirates to escape.
The cargo ships were carrying medical and pharmaceutical products as well as raw factory materials worth millions of dollars to Iran.
In late July, the Iranian Navy dispatched its 31st flotilla to the Gulf of Aden and the high seas to protect the country’s cargo ships and oil tankers against pirates.
On August 24, the 31st Fleet of the Iranian Navy, comprised of Bayandor destroyer and Bandar Abbas logistic warship, docked at Djibouti port with the message of peace and friendship after sailing 2,200 nautical miles in free waters.
The fleet of warships had escorted 670 military and cargo ships and identified and traced trans-regional vessels and aircraft by then.
Iran’s 30th flotilla of warships ended its mission in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean and returned home in July.
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 via the Suez Canal.
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