The ships, including the USS Harry S. Truman and the FS Provence, a French frigate, were passing through the strait when the Iranian Revolutionary Guard vessels hailed them over maritime radio and announced a live-fire exercise.
Advertisement
Odd-even scheme starts in Delhi
Similarly, the Even numbered non-transport four wheeled vehicles (motor cars etc.) would be allowed to park on even dates only. Vehicles carrying medical emergencies, women, VIPs, CNG cars and two-wheelers have been exempted from this odd-even formula.
“The Guards’ naval force had no exercise in the past week when the Americans claim that a missile or rocket was sacked in the Hormuz Strait area”, said Gen Ramezan Sharif.
Oil resumes decline in Asia ahead of United States stockpiles data
Oil prices nudged higher on Thursday after declining yesterday as there were mixed messages about the fate of black gold in 2016. Total production from Iran is holding steady at around 2.85 million barrels per day from the 2013 average of 2.67 million bpd.
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iran on Thursday denied US accusations of launching a provocative rocket test last week near Western warships in the Strait of Hormuz, dismissing the claim as “psychological warfare” against the Islamic Republic.
Mexican official says ‘affluenza’ teen won’t have special privileges in detention
The court sentenced him to mental health treatment and a decade of probation , a ruling seen as too lenient by many Americans. According to ABC News , Ethan Couch’s father issued a statement through his lawyer saying he’s cooperating with authorities.
In 2012 Iran threatened to block the strait, which lies at the entrance of the Gulf and is 33km (21 miles) wide at its narrowest point.
For its part, Iran has tested a long-range guided ballistic missile, escalated its cyberespionage program against the USA, and cracked down on journalists, activists and opposition figures.
There was never any direct communication between the U.S. and Iranian navies during the incident, according to the official.
USA officials have said the Treasury Department retains a right under the nuclear agreement to blacklist Iranian entities suspected of involvement in missile development.
News, citing unnamed United States military officials, said the Guards were conducting a live-fire exercise and the USA aircraft-carrier Harry S. Truman came within about 1,500 yards (meters) of a rocket as it entered the Gulf with other warships.
Raines said Iranian Revolutionary Guard vessels offered “only 23 minutes of advance notification”.
“Firing weapons so close to passing coalition ships and commercial traffic within an internationally recognized maritime traffic lane is unsafe, unprofessional and inconsistent with global maritime law”, he said.
The US said the rockets were not fired in the direction of vessels from the US or any other state.
Supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said that new sanctions would constitute a violation of the agreement.
A team of United Nations sanctions monitors said in a confidential report seen by Reuters on December 15 that Iran tested a rocket on October 10 capable of delivering a nuclear warhead, which Iran maintains was a convention missile.
The US Navy’s 5th Fleet is based in nearby Bahrain. Iran also recently aired footage on state television of an underground missile base. Taraghi has long expressed the view that the nuclear deal did not signal a transformation of the long-strained relations between the United States and Iran.
Advertisement
Iran seized a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo ship and later released it in May after its forces had earlier surrounded a U.S.-flagged cargo ship transiting the strait.
