Sailors killed after Iran’s missile ‘accidentally’ hits its own ship | News



[ad_1]

At least 19 sailors died and 15 were injured after an Iranian missile fired during a training exercise in the Gulf of Oman struck a support ship near its target..

The “friendly fire” accident occurred Sunday near the port of Jask, about 1,270km (790 miles) southeast of Tehran in the Gulf of Oman, a statement on the army website said Monday.

Plus:

“On Sunday afternoon, during an exercise by several navy ships in the Jask and Chabahar waters, the Konarak light support ship had an accident,” he said.

The missile hit the Konarak, a Hendijan-class support ship, which was participating in the maneuvers.

State television said the Konarak had been putting targets in the water for other ships to fire when it was hit.

“Iran’s Moudge-class frigate Jamaran accidentally hit the Konarak ship with a missile during the exercise,” Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

The failed training exercises raised new questions about the readiness of the Islamic Republic’s armed forces amid intense tensions with the United States, just months after they accidentally shot down a Ukrainian plane near Tehran, killing 176 passengers.

It also comes shortly after a tense naval encounter between Iranian and American forces in the nearby Gulf.

Iranian media said Konarak had been overhauled in 2018 and was able to launch marine missiles. The Dutch-made 47-meter (155-foot) vessel had been in service since 1988.

It was not immediately clear how many crew members were on board the warship at the time of the accident.

Turkey’s Anadolu news agency reported that up to 40 crew members were aboard the Konarak.

Anadolu said the incident was attributed to “human error,” citing sources from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.

Iran regularly exercises in the Gulf of Oman, which is closed to the strategic Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Gulf, through which 20 percent of the world’s oil passes.

The Iranian media rarely reports mishaps during its exercises, highlighting the seriousness of the incident.

Iranian ships towed the Konarak to a nearby naval base after the attack. A photograph released by the army showed marks of burns and damage to the boat.

‘Credibility damaged’

Apparently, the sailors may have been shooting anti-missile Nomis during the exercise, said Reed Foster, a senior analyst at Jane’s. Said a replacement for the container. it will probably take years to enter service, “and it was a severe blow to the navy that has also seen a destroyer sink in the Caspian Sea in January 2018.

“Perhaps the greatest impact to the Iranian military and government is that this is the second high-profile incident in less than half a year in which missile targeting errors have resulted in significant loss of life,Reed said.

Added the friendly fire incident damages credibilityfrom claims by the Iranian army and government that the country can develop sophisticated defensive weapons despite international sanctions.

The USA. Navy5th Fleet, which monitors the region, did not respond to a request for comment.

Iran’s missile “accidentally” hits its own ship, kills a sailor

Tensions between the United States and Iran

The incident also comes at a time of intense tensions between Iran and the United States.

Relations between the two enemies have deteriorated considerably since 2018 when United States President Donald Trump withdrew his country from a 2015 nuclear deal between key world powers and Iran.

Washington again imposed sanctions on Tehran, paralyzing its economy.

Animosity intensified in early January when the United States assassinated Iran’s top military commander Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.

Iran retaliated on January 8 by firing missiles at bases in Iraq where US troops were stationed.

On the same day, Iran’s armed forces shot down a Kiev-bound Boeing 737 passenger jet over Tehran, killing all 176 people on board.

The military admitted the “catastrophic error”, saying it occurred when Iran’s air defenses were on high alert after firing the barrage of missiles at US targets in Iraq.

In April, the United States accused Iran of driving dangerous and harassingmaneuvers near US warships in the northern Gulf. Iran was also suspected of briefly seizing a Hong Kong-flagged oil tanker just before that.

Analysts have warned that regional tensions are likely to escalate again. This week also marks the anniversary of the attacks on tankers near the strait that the United States blamed on Iran.



[ad_2]