Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Saturday accused Iranian authorities of piracy following the seizure of the Portuguese-flagged cargo ship sailing through the Strait of Hormuz, and called on the European Union and the international community to recognize Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy had seized on Saturday, the Israeli-linked MSC ARIES a cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the Iranian news agency IRNA, the vessel involved was the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, a container ship associated with London-based Zodiac Maritime. Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group.
IRNA reported that the ship was captured by helicopters and personnel were evacuated from its surface and towed to Iranian territorial waters.
Amid reports that Iran could strike targets on Israeli territories, the US has moved its own additional military assets to the region.
Two Navy destroyers, including the USS Carney, were relocated to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea last week, media reports said, citing a Navy official. The UK, although it has two warships in the region, including the HMS Diamond, reportedly said it had no plans to join US operations off the coast of Israel.
Iran has been considering various assault scenarios, including a direct strike using medium-range missiles, the WSJ reported, citing an adviser to the Iranian military.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for his part, has reiterated his country’s determination to retaliate against any assault, saying, “Whoever harms us, we will harm them."
More than ten countries have advised their citizens to avoid travelling to Israel, Iran and other territories in the region amid ongoing escalation.
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An advisor to Iran’s supreme leader said Saturday that Israel is panicking over a possible retaliatory response from Iran after a strike in Syria which killed members of its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
ReplyDelete“It has been a week that the Zionists are in complete panic and are on alert,” Yahya Rahim Safavi, senior advisor to Ali Khamenei, was quoted as saying by the ISNA news agency.
“They don’t know what Iran wants to do, so they and their supporters are terrified,” ISNA quoted him as saying.
Dutch airline KLM will no longer fly over Israel and Iran, Dutch press agency ANP reported on Saturday, citing a KLM spokesperson.
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