FOX News: Fleet of Iranian ships heading to Yemen turns around after being tracked by US warships
A nine-ship Iranian convoy believed to be laden with weapons bound for rebels in Yemen turned around Thursday after being followed by U.S. warships stationed in the area to prevent arms shipments, multiple sources in the Pentagon told Fox News.
The sources said the nine-ship convoy is south of Salalah, Oman, and now headed northeast in the Arabian Sea in the direction of home. The ships, which include seven freighters and two frigates, had sailed southwest along the coast of Yemen heading in the direction of Aden and the entrance to the Red Sea. They appeared to drop anchor in the north Arabian Sea, after the USS Theodore Roosevelt, the USS Normandy and a half-dozen other American ships arrived in the Arabian Sea on Monday, and U.S. officials said that they could intercept the convoy.
WNU Editor: No one else is reporting on this change of course for the Iranian navy .... and this story may change in the next minute .... but if true it means that tensions have been appreciably relieved.
Update: Iran's Arabian Sea Ship Convoy Heads Home Before Meeting U.S. Navy And Allies (IBTimes).
Update #3: Yup .... it looks like they have turned around .... Iranian Ships Turn Back From Yemen After Standoff (NBC).
3 comments:
This is very bad news for Assad and the current Iraqi government.
James .... unless a side agreement has been made. My money is on there being a lot of quiet diplomacy happening right now that we are not hearing about, and there is quid pro quo .... a big one .... for the Iranians to quietly back down.
WNU,
Exactly. It could only be a scare off or bought off. The buy-off, you go back home quietly, and you get the nuke deal you want with the US shielding you from the Israelis. The scare off would be of course "you can go in, but at you own risk".
I would think this still leaves Assad, Nasrallah, and the current Iraqi government with a lot to think about.
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