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FARS NEWS/ AFP - Getty Images
The USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier is seen as it allegedly went "inside the manoeuvre zone" where Iranian ships are conducting 10 days of wargames in the Gulf, accoridng to Iranian officials.
An Iranian surveillance plane has video recorded and photographed a U.S. aircraft carrier near a strategic waterway in the Persian Gulf, the country's IRNA news agency reported Thursday.
The report did not provide details, and it was unclear what information the Iranian military could glean from such images. But the announcement is an indication that Iran is seeking to cast its navy as having a powerful role in the region's waters.
IRNA quoted Iran's navy chief, Adm. Habibollah Sayyari, as saying the action shows that Iran has "control over the moves by foreign forces" in the area, where Tehran is holding a 10-day military exercise.
Iran has alarmed American officials and the world by declaring it would close the main artery for oil exports from the Persian Gulf if the West imposes sanctions over its nuclear program. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
"An Iranian vessel and surveillance plane have tracked, filmed and photographed a U.S. aircraft carrier as it was entering the Gulf of Oman from the Persian Gulf," Sayyari said.
He added that the "foreign fleet will be warned by Iranian forces if it enters the area of the drill."
State TV showed what appeared to be the reported video, but it was not possible to make out the details of the carrier because the video was shot from far away.
The Iranian exercise is taking place in international waters near the Strait of Hormuz — the passageway for one-sixth of the world's oil supply.
Beyond it lie vast bodies of water, including the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet is also active in the area, as are warships of several other countries that patrol for pirates there.
Lt. Rebecca Rebarich, a spokeswoman for the U.S. 5th Fleet, said the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis and guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay headed out from the Gulf and through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, after a visit to Dubai's Jebel Ali port.
She described the passage through the strait as "a pre-planned, routine transit" for the carrier, which is providing air support from the north Arabian Sea to troops in Afghanistan.
Rebarich did not directly address Iranian claims of possessing the reported video but said the 5th Fleet's "interaction with the regular Iranian Navy continues to be within the standards of maritime practice, well known, routine and professional."
Thursday's report follows U.S. warnings over Iranian threats to choke off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz if Washington imposes sanctions targeting Iran's crude exports. On Wednesday, Rebarich said the Navy was "always ready to counter malevolent actions to ensure freedom of navigation."
The U.S. 5th Fleet said on Wednesday it would not allow any disruption of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
"Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated," the Bahrain-based fleet said in an e-mail.
Gen. Hossein Salami, the acting commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, rejected the warning.
"The U.S. is not in a position" to affect Iran's decisions, Salami told the semi-official Fars news agency Thursday. "Iran does not ask permission to implement its own defensive strategies."
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Let us all remember, the waters these 2 nations are sailing in are INTERNATIONAL waters. One has a right to be there just as much as the other. If the US is intentionally sending the 5th Fleet into a relatively small area, then we are playing right into the Iranians hands. Captains will set their course and if by chance, it happens to intersect the course of the other vessel, we have a game of chicken - just like US fleet embargo of Cuba that almost started WW3. Our recon planes violate international air space all the time taking high res photos of their "secrets". And not an iranian recon plane operating in international air space takes pictures of an American ship, also in international water, and we get upset - please. Obviously the US sanctions are working. Just wish the United Nations, for which US pays vast majority for, would do their job and quit worming out of their responsibility. I don't see any other country putting its soldiers in harms way as ofter as the way the US does. Take look at US Foreigh Aid dollers handed out to countries that could care less about the US or its "interests". Only thing they care about is continuing to receive YOUR tax dollars. Pick a country, it doesn't matter. Then do the research to find out the money we send them each year and remember it come IRS tax time, thats if you pay taxes anymore.
Yeh sick and tired BUT this is a Nazi Germany type reckless and mass murdering regime..·32 years Nazi Germany only lasted 12.!!
John they are not only reckless.¡They have committed terroist attacks on 6 continents either directly or through hamas and hezbollah.They blew up and mass murdered hundreds of people in Buenas Aires and that`s just the tip of the iceburg..And you can`t engage with terrorist liars especially of the Muslm kind .Even with other Muslims they are double dealing and murderous.With infidels and non Muslims .it`s impossible. This is a world wide problem.Not since Nazi Germany has there been a regime like this? Their ranting and raving has justifiably been called the 4th Reich. No way will the world wait much longer..But they are no comparison with nazi Germany.They are a paper tiger and will be defeatd rapidly with massive attacks.If they try anything funny they will bring their whole population along with them just as Hitler did Hitler was responsible for the incredible destruction of Germany and the Ayatollahs will be respnsible for the incredible destruciton of Iran.!!..
War in the Middle East means Boots-on-the-Ground. No matter what damage we cause we eventually have to be on site. War with Iran means we would be fighting a modern military that has a Midieval mind set. It would take a complete removal of the religon and that never works. Iran is an immediate threat to Israel and a potential threat to our intrests. This scenario has played out before and the most successful action have been those which keep "Them" at a stone age level, meaning their advances aer wiped out and recovery and further development is more costly and slower. As long as the government is supported by the military , without outside support, the government will trump any civillian movement. Iran will be with us for generations and they will continue to try to spread their influence throughout the Islamic world.
Great. More posturing between a peacock and a chicken...
Iran has literally dozens of fast small boats with anti shipping missiles, each capable of sinking or badly damaging US assets. After the Cole was nearly sunk by a 15' row boat, US naval strategists admitted small fast boats with missiles and fanatical crews are the one thing they were not prepared to engage, and here (Straights of Hormuz) we are in the middle of the area where small fast boats with missile are "born"
It is not what you see on TV or your video games
Ships that are armed with Gatling guns should be able to handle a few missile attacks, but not, perhaps a coordinated mass attack. Perhaps a high-tec, high-speed PT boat can counter the assymetric force?
No matter what you see in the movies, the "Gatling gun" or more appropriately the CIWS or "Sea whiz" has not been nicknamed the "sea chicken" for nothing, it isn't all that good
That chain gun mounted under the nose of an Apache would work pretty good along with hellfire missiles for small boats.
3 words... scramble the jets
Sure go ahead media and try to put a spin city on this so you can make the world panic and drive up oil prices. This is why we need an all out push for Solar power in this country and an end to oil as an energy product.
If Iran has "control of the movement of foreign forces" then I have control of the movement of flying cows, clouds, and Los Angeles traffic!
I hope Iran doesn't so something stupid like trying to attack an aircraft carrier group. You have no idea the hell that will rain down on your military as the battle group unleashes cruise missiles, Harpoon missiles, guided munitions from the aircraft. Watch in horror as SM-3 missiles shoot down your missiles and planes. Watch as your disgusting Islamic Republic comes crashing down.
Agreed. An aircraft carrier is a bit like the Starship Enterprise, which could take out an entire planet! Thing is, our carriers are FOR REAL, and can probably take out the entire Iranian infrastructure. It would be devastating!
It did two tours in the Arabian Gulf aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Constellation. We had many interactions with the Iranian navy, even had them fire at a seal team as they were getting ready to board a cargo vessel. They would also fly helicopters as close as they could to us as we were doing stores and weapon on loads. This is not really a big deal, just the media trying to make more out of something that has been going on for a long time.
Thank goodness we have a Commander in Chief with proven leadership; Congress and presidential candidates like the war hoop to rile up public support, but never count the cost of war. President Obama will be the first president to make the case for not going to war. If we can talk with North Korea, we can talk with Iran. President Obama: speak softly but carry a big stick, as one previous president said.
Congress will start a war they'll refuse to pay for; Democrats need to hold the ground for not bankrupting our country by the war hawks who talk about deficits, but refuse to deal with it reasonably.
Conservatives believe in the right to life, and then practice war as population control.
This is humor, right? Like sarcasm?
Can't blame Iran's activity on American Conservatives. Democrats are just as accomplished at war as Republicans. Give your partisan pandering a break and get ready to support the United States and its allies against Iran and theirs.
Democrats started the Viet Nam War.
Sorry if anyone has mentioned this already, but my concern would be that the Iranians might be conducting their "exercises" to plant mines in the straight. There are some that sit entirely on the seabed, and can be activated to pop up to "traffic" level on command. I hope we've got the tech to detect anything the ayatollah-lovers leave behind.
Agreed, and I think we do have that technology. I was reading about it the other day.
When can we expect *Dick* & Lez Cheney to go on Faux Noize to blast Obama for not re-commencing World War Duhbya ?
America should sink the Iranian Navy in the Strait of Hormuz to block thier oil.
That would be a sanction that Iran would understand.
Americas Got Oil. More oil than is in the Middle East.
Vietnam was a waste partly because we never properly supported our troops on the ground there; but you will see that we take shutting off any flow of oil extremely seriously, and unleash the thunder that was kept under wraps in Vietnam. Iran cannot win a war against any NATO member, but it can lose. Still, NATO will take great damage from a conflagration with Iran. No nation should possess nuclear weapons, especially theocracies like Iran.
Nah, the US is not in a position to stop your fruitless games.
Until you try to stop that "drop" of oil.
Good reason why the pictures are fuzzy and from far away.
We don't want your tin cans to be sunk now do we?
The most important observation about this latest Iranian threat is that it isn't against any single country but against the entire International group. It isn't a mere threat to the US but goes beyond that and is indeed an act of war towards the entire planet. This is an International waterway and not owned by Iran or a part of their land. If Iran tries this and attempts a blockade, the International community will surely ban together, probably both the Arab League and Nato will respond.
I know I know, The US starts it everytime. These poor defenseless Arab nations do not deserve the American Military hovering over them waiting to pounce. Marlene I would like to sponsor you to go to Iran as a good will ambassador. You can drink tea and eat cookies with those nice people. They won't try you as a spy, They will take you to all their nuclear medical research facilities and prove to you that they are not trying to make a weapon and they would never try to take out the Israelis. They are just trying to live in peace. OK back to reality Marlene you obviously have not been any where in the world and you probably shouldn't, you would not last ten minutes. These people are nuts and have been brainwashed in a culture that values death over life. They only want our money and power. The only mistake the world keeps making is buying the oil from them.
If Everybody would quit buying oil from them , they would not have any money to buy military equipment. They only supply 1/6th of the worlds oil, we don't need them they need us (U.S. , Russia, Europe, Japan and China.) If we all quit buying it from any Middle East country, They might leave us alone. Well maybe not.
Hey Mikey you gonna pay for this new war? Where's your concern over "out of control" spending or is that not a problem when you get to kill brown people and blow stuff up?
News report Iran we are tracking one Amreican war ship, they are tracking all of ours! From space????
Oooh! They have a picture of one of our carriers.
We have their asses on our radar screens, and we've got F-18s in the air all over the place, like a hornets nest.
Pun intended.
When we finally do have to hit Iran, the list of nations that will be participating will surprise many.
Now THIS is something the righties will ignore their made-up concern over spending about. They don't mind using taxpayer money to blow stuff up so WHATADICK Cheney can make money on the mopup. The "pro-life" right is all for spending on military. Their cries of WE MUST REIN IN SPENDING don't apply to THEIR favorite programs. What a bunch of chickenhawk hypocrites.
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. John Stuart Mill describes the democrat so well in this quote!
May be good words but how far are you will to go, how far would he be willing to go. Can you kill children that have nothing to do with this or know nothing about this. That is what this war is all about and that is what this war will come to on both sides. We are not ready or willing to fight this the way it needs to be fought and I'm not sure if it can truly be won both sides might just get tired of the killing!
The John C. Stennis is operating in international waters. The Iranians are welcome to take all the photos they like, but if they make any kind of close approach to the carrier, they will be shot down. Their rhetoric makes it plain that their intentions are not peaceful, and under no circumstances will we risk one of our carriers.
Why don't we see if they can track about a dozen nuclear missles headed for Tehran and other Iranian cities!
There might be an opportunity for the American People to secure a nuclear deterrent against the secret cult that has infiltrated our Federal Government. Competition is good. The arrogant, matter-of-fact trickle down platitudes from the Holocaust deniers in Washington D.C. are becoming tedious. None of those dangerous and dirty satanic cult thugs have presented a plan to make reparations for the crimes of the Reagan Administration. They'll get no support from us unless they throw-in with the U.S. working class.
The U.S. Military has a penchant for abandoning our expensive military equipment on the battlefield. They waste the lives of our servicemen on trumped-up wild goose chases, looking for imaginary weapons of mass destruction. The Federal government gives quadrillions of our wealth to our worst enemies. They'll weaken our forces until an Iranian child could club our forces to death with the jawbone of an ass. Makes as much sense as anything else they do.
The cult of the greedy is expendable, I'll provide my own security thank you very much. Pay your own way. Get your hands off my pocketbook.
The Iranians have a right as all nations have the right of passage in international waters.Just because the Iranians took pictures of our ships is not a problem,They knew enough to stay real far when they took the video,or they would have been shot down.The leader of Iran has a big mouth.But they have nothing else.If they want to play games and if they start or provoke a war ,Then they will all die.All we have to do is send in some missiles and in a few hours they will start begging for mercy,but I say don't stop and deliver a big final blow and send in an aircraft to drop leaflets to tell all civilians to get out of the capital of Iran because in 2 days it will be a dessert.anybody left in there after 2 days deserves to die.
Iran had best be very carefull. If they get into a shooting war with the 5th fleet, they will be decimated. Iran doesen't control the Straight of Hormuz....America does, and Iran knows it!
You would think that a country that was so concerned with developing its nuclear capabilities wouldn't risk their destruction by instigating an act of war like blocking the Strait of Hormuz. After all, acts of war justify whatever retaliation is necessary to prevent future acts of war.
Yeah, like we're not provoking anything by imposing sanctions against Iran...
Shandril, those sanctions were developed and voted on by a uni-lateral body known as the United Nations, not the United States. You typed that nonsense with crayons?