• US nuclear attack submarine hits fishing vessel in Gulf

    By Jim Miklaszewski and Courtney Kube, NBC News

    WASHINGTON -- A nuclear-powered American attack submarine hit a fishing trawler after it passed through the Strait of Hormuz into the Persian Gulf on Thursday, a Navy official said.


    No one was injured in the incident, which occurred at 5 a.m. local time (9 p.m. ET Wednesday), but the top of the submarine's periscope was shorn off and the sub was forced to use a second periscope, the official said.

    The reactor on the nuclear-powered USS Jacksonville was not affected. "There was no damage to the propulsion plant systems and there is no concern regarding watertight integrity," the Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet said in a statement.

    As for the trawler, it may not have even realized it hit the submarine and did not appear to suffer any damage.

    The vessel "continued on a consistent course and speed offering no indication of distress or acknowledgment of a collision," the Fifth Fleet said in a statement.

    A Navy investigation is underway.

    In the past, Iran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz over its quarrel with United States about its nuclear ambitions.

    The U.S. says it keeps a naval presence in the region to maintain security.

    Reuters contributed to this report. 

    Related stories:
    Slideshow: Slices of daily life in Iran
    Danger zone then and now: Strait of Hormuz
    Reporter's notebook: Journey to the Strait of Hormuz

  • US Navy ship collides with oil tanker in Gulf

    Jonathan Sunderman / AFP - Getty Images

    A handout picture released by the U.S. Navy shows the damaged destroyer USS Porter following a collision with a bulk oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday.

    By NBC News wire services

    An oil tanker collided with a U.S. Navy destroyer near the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday but no one was hurt and shipping traffic in the waterway, through which 40 percent of the world's seaborne oil exports pass, was not affected, officials said. 

    "Both vessels are okay and the Strait of Hormuz is not closed, and business is as usual there," an Oman coast guard official told Reuters, declining to be named under briefing rules. 

    The collision nevertheless left a gaping hole in the starboard side of USS Porter, a guided-missile destroyer suffered, but no one was injured on either vessel, the U.S. Navy said in a statement. The collision with the Panamanian-flagged bulk oil tanker M/V Otowasan occurred at approximately 1 a.m. local time. 

    The cause of the incident is under investigation, the Navy said, adding that there were no reports of spills or leakages from either the USS Porter or the Otowasan. 

    A collision between an oil tanker and a U.S. Navy missile destroyer in the Strait of Hormuz left the Navy ship with a gaping hole in its hull. NBC's Lester Holt reports.

    US won't allow Iran to shut down Strait of Hormuz, Panetta vows

    The USS Porter is on a scheduled deployment to the U.S. 5th Fleet, which is based in Bahrain. 

    The Strait of Hormuz, located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, is where one-fifth of the world's oil is routed. Tensions have risen there over Iran's threats to block tanker traffic in retaliation for tighter sanctions by the West. 

    Three years ago, The USS Hartford, a nuclear-powered submarine based in Groton, Conn., collided in the Strait with the USS New Orleans, a San Diego-based amphibious ship. 

    The New Orleans' fuel tank was ruptured and 15 sailors on the Hartford sustained minor injuries. The collision caused $2.3 million in damage to the New Orleans, and the cost so far of repairs to the Hartford is $102.6 million. 

    A Navy ship opened fire on a boat that appeared to pose a threat, and a there is a new UAE oil pipeline that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, with CNBC's Tyler Mathisen and Sharon Epperson.

    Strait of Hormuz: Iranians, smugglers and fireworks

    The commanding officer was relieved of his duties and the sub's chief of the boat, an adviser to the commanding officer, was reassigned. Several crew members were punished. 

    Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

    More world stories from NBC News:


  • Iran test-fires missile with new guidance system

    By Reuters

    DUBAI -- Iran has successfully test-fired a new short-range missile equipped with a guidance system that it plans to install on all future missiles it builds, Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi said Saturday. 

    "With the fourth-generation of the Fateh 110, the armed forces of our country are able to target and destroy land and sea targets, enemy headquarters ... missile seats, ammunition sites, radars and other points," Vahidi said in quotes carried by Islamic Republic News Agency.  

    The Fateh 110 has a range of around 180 miles, IRNA reported, meaning it would only be able to strike Iran's immediate neighbors. 

    The announcement follows mounting tension over Iran's nuclear facilities, which the Islamic Republic says are geared solely towards electricity production, but which Western countries believe are aimed at developing an atomic bomb. 

     Israel tells US time is running out for peaceful end to Iran nuclear dispute

    "Using new guidance methods, target-striking systems were installed on the missiles and during the flight test... its ability to hit the target without deviation was proven," Vahidi said according to IRNA. 

    "In future programs all future missiles built by the Defense Ministry will be equipped with this capability," he added. 

     Iran: We can destroy US bases 'minutes after an attack'

    Iranian officials have threatened in the past to close the Strait of Hormuz, the neck of the Gulf through which 40 percent of the world's sea-borne oil exports pass, in retaliation for sanctions levied against its crude exports, or military action. 

    Such a move would risk a military response from the United States, which has built up its military presence in the Gulf. 

    Vahidi also said the missile was intended as a defensive weapon. "These capabilities are defensive and would only be used against aggressors and those who threaten the country's interests and territorial integrity," he said. 

    More world stories from NBC News:


    Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

  • Danger zone then and now: Strait of Hormuz

    /

    A U.S Navy helicopter flies over the 21st U.S. escorted convoy on Dec. 21, 1987. The convoy originated in Kuwait and consisted of two tankers and two U.S. guided missile frigates. The so-called Tanker War started properly in 1984 when Iraq attacked Iranian tankers and a vital oil terminal at Kharg island.

    By Steve O’Neill, NBC News cameraman

    “You are standing into danger! Alter course now!”

    The American warship radio operator repeated the warning, saying we had entered its self-proclaimed  two-mile exclusion zone in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow channel through which 35 percent of all seaborne oil flows.  Suddenly, while the U.S. Navy was threatening us with lethal force, an Iranian frigate opened fire without warning.

    It was the second-half of 1987 and tensions were as high in the Strait of Hormuz as they are today.  Iran was laying mines in the Gulf and strait to target oil tankers from Iraq, with which it was at war.  I was working for NBC News as a cameraman, filming activity on the strait from a Bell Jet Ranger helicopter.

    We had just passed about half-a-mile away from an unidentified frigate on a parallel course. I suspected it was Iranian and started filming. Seconds later it opened fire on us with its double-barreled 35mm anti-aircraft guns.

    I figured it would be too late to warn NBC’s helicopter pilot, Grant Witham, and still filming, braced myself for being knocked out of the sky.

    It didn’t happen. Witham was still talking to the angry U.S. Navy radio guy who was convinced we had entered his exclusion zone, trying to persuade him we were nowhere near his ship. I interrupted and shouted over the intercom, “Grant, that warship on the starboard side, it just opened fire on us. It must be Iranian!”

    Witham dropped the helicopter like a stone, pulling out just above the water and started a zigzag course away from the Iranian warship, telling the U.S. Navy radio operator we were coming under fire. Amazingly, the American radio operator changed from threatening us to telling us they were headed in our direction to offer help.

    Afterwards, we pieced together what happened. The previous day a BBC News helicopter had flown right over the Iranian warship, which had threatened over maritime radio to shoot it down if it came close again. We didn’t have maritime radio aboard our chopper and the Iranians had no way of communicating through our aircraft frequencies.  So they had radioed us on the marine channel, threatening to shoot at us as we flew close by, but we were oblivious to the danger.

    In the meantime, Witham had been tied up talking to the American ship, which had mistaken us for another helicopter that had intruded into its “zone,” and he was too busy to notice the frigate on our right.

    All of this happened seemingly in less than a few minutes, and demonstrates to me at least, just how tense and dangerous the region can be. One or two small mistakes or misunderstandings can suddenly escalate and the results can be catastrophic.

    None less so than the accidental shooting down of the Iranian Airliner Flight 655 on July 3, 1988, with the loss of all 290 passengers and crew. The USS Aegis Cruiser Vincennes had incorrectly identified the Airbus A300 as an Iranian F-14 Tomcat fighter and targeted the airliner with two missiles with devastating results. (Read a Washington Post story on the incident here)

    More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

  • In search of unity on Iran: US military chief travels to Israel

    Jim R. Bounds / AP

    This week's postponement of joint military maneuvers - and sharp remarks in Washington disowning the killing of an Iranian nuclear scientist which many suspect was the work of Israeli agents - have fueled speculation that General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, may be flying in from Europe to lay down the law and rein in his close ally.

    By Reuters

    The United States' top military officer arrives in Israel on Thursday as the allies coordinate efforts to curb Iran's nuclear program - and play down suggestions they are at odds on strategy.

    The United States, which is leading Western pressure on Tehran to curb controversial uranium enrichment, has voiced concern that the Israelis could attack their foe preemptively and deepen instability in an already volatile region.

    The Strait of Hormuz has become a flashpoint and now tensions could escalate beyond angry rhetoric. NBC's Richard Engel reports.

    This week's postponement of joint military maneuvers - and sharp remarks in Washington disowning the killing of an Iranian nuclear scientist which many suspect was the work of Israeli agents - have fueled speculation that General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, may be flying in from Europe to lay down the law and rein in his close ally.

    Officials on both sides rejected that idea: "Chiefs of staff deal with preparing their militaries for various options," Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Wednesday.

    "They don't deal in passing diplomatic messages."

    Barak also said that any decision about an Israeli attack on Iran was "very far off." Like the United States, Israel does not believe Iranian assurances that its nuclear research has no military purpose. It says it would use force to prevent the Islamic Republic from acquiring atomic weapons that Israel believes would threaten the survival of the Jewish state.

    Along with an unusually dovish comment last week from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that U.S.-led economic sanctions against Iran appeared to be having an effect, Barak's remarks appeared designed to counter suggestions that Israel was losing patience with U.S. President Barack Obama's diplomatic approach.

    Both sides also insisted that they postponed a joint air defense exercise, planned for May, for operational reasons that were entirely unrelated to the situation with Iran. 

    Tehran claims it has strong evidence that this week's attack on one of its nuclear scientists was planned and coordinated by the CIA. NBC's Ali Arouzi reports.

    A record of barely concealed friction between Netanyahu's right-wing coalition and the Democrat in the White House has added to speculation about differences over Iran - differences which are now particularly sensitive as Obama campaigns for re-election in November and faces criticism from some U.S. voters for lacking vigor in his support for Israel.

    Barak further played down the importance of Dempsey's first visit to Israel in his current capacity by noting that, as Israeli defense minister, he was in regular direct contact with his U.S. counterpart, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.

    "The dialogue between us is conducted on the basis of mutual respect," Barak said. "This administration gives unprecedented support to Israel's defense establishment."

    A U.S. official said that Dempsey, who was to arrive on Thursday evening for a stopover after a European trip, was "meeting with counterparts and important close allies, regardless of any current political situations." He will leave again on Friday as Israel shuts down for the Jewish sabbath.

    Iran denies seeking the bomb, but its secretive nuclear projects and advances in ballistic missile development have drawn international censure and sanctions. The U.S. navy has also maneuvered in the Gulf in the face of an Iranian threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic oil-export channel.

    Israel, which is presumed to have the only nuclear arsenal in the Middle East, has urged Washington to stiffen penalties on Iran's energy sector and central bank, and hinted it could resort to unilateral attacks if it deems diplomacy a dead end.

    Such differences between the allies have been seized upon by Obama's Republican rivals ahead of this year's presidential election. The incumbent says he is determined to rein in Iran and has sought to burnish his pro-Israel credentials.

    Israel celebrated Tuesday the homecoming of Corporal Gilad Shalit, after it agreed to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in return. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports.

    A senior Israeli official played down the unilateral Israeli "military option" on Thursday and appealed to U.S. interests in a Middle East where the popular Arab uprisings have shaken U.S.-aligned leaders, some of whom, like those in the Gulf, share Israeli and Western views of Iran as a threat.

    "America is, to my regret, perceived in the Arab world as a country that has become weak and may be unable to provide them with the protection they desire in the face of Iran," Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor told Army Radio.

    Should the Obama administration succeed in rolling back such perceptions among its Arab allies, Meridor said, it "would shore up their status, which is so important -- important for them and, by the way, for us -- in the Arab world."

    More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

    Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

  • US: Encounter with Iran ship not hostile

    The Strait of Hormuz has become a flashpoint and now tensions could escalate beyond angry rhetoric. NBC's Richard Engel reports.

    By Jim Miklaszewski and Courtney Kube, NBC News

    Last week's close encounter between U.S. ships and Iranian speed boats in the Strait of Hormuz was considered "routine" and a "very common occurence" especially for ships transiting the strait, a senior defense official and a U.S. military official tell NBC News.

    According to the officials, the U.S. Navy amphibious ship New Orleans was heading through the Strait of Hormuz nearing the Persian Gulf on Jan. 6 when three Iranian boats approached at high speed.  The New Orleans radioed the usual warning to the fast boats to keep their distance.  The Iranians did not respond by radio, but simply turned and sped away. The fast boats never got closer than 700 yards.

    On the same day, the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Adak was also approached by Iranian fast boats, one which had a machine-gun mounted on the bow.  As in the case of the New Orleans, the Iranian boats turned away when warned off.

    The officials told NBC News on Friday that the encounters occurred just as the Iranians were wrapping up their "naval exercises" in the Gulf and the strait.

    The officials called the encounters "predictable behavior that has been going on for years."

    U.S. Navy officials said the communications were "professional," and the U.S. ships were not forced to increase their security or threat levels.

    U.S. officials denied a report that Iranian boats "harassed" the U.S. ships or displayed hostile intent.

    Tensions over Iran's nuclear program have escalated in recent weeks to their highest level in years. Tehran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, raising global fears of a possible military clash.

    January 6, 2012 - Three Iranian Fast Boats speed within several hundred yards of the USS New Orleans, an Amphibious Transport Dock ship, as it transits the Strait of Hormuz.

    Jan. 6, 2012 - Three Iranian fast boats trail in the wake of U.S. Coast Guard cutter Adak as it operates in the Persian Gulf.

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  • Despite tensions, US rescues 13 Iranian seamen from pirates

    The pirates were brought aboard the U.S.S. John C. Stennis, the same ship Iran's navy threatened on Tuesday. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

    By NBC News and msnbc.com staff

    Casting aside current tensions between the U.S. and Iran, the U.S. Navy on Friday rescued 13 Iranian seamen who were being held captive by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Oman.

    A Navy helicopter from the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis, responding to a distress call from a merchant ship under attack by pirates, chased the pirates to their "mother ship," an Iranian-flagged dhow that had earlier been hijacked.

    U.S. Navy

    A sailor aboard a safety boat observes a "visit, board, search and seizure team" from USS Kidd on Thursday, Jan. 5. The Navy boarded the Iranian-flagged fishing dhow Al Molai to rescue 13 Iranian seamen held captive by Somali pirates.

     

    A heavily-armed counter-piracy team from the Navy destroyer USS Kidd met little resistance when they boarded the dhow where they found 15 armed pirates and the 13 Iranians who were being held hostage. The pirates were taken into custody. The Iranians were set free in their dhow.

     

    The rescue occurred about 175 miles southeast of Muscat, Oman.

    It came less than two days after Iran threatened never to allow the USS John C. Stennis back to the Persian gulf following its departure last week for the Gulf of Oman and North Arabian Sea.

    U.S. Navy

    The USS Kidd responds to a distress call from the Iranian-flagged fishing dhow Al Molai on Thursday, Jan. 5. The Navy boarded the ship to rescue 13 Iranian seamen held captive by Somali pirates.

    An Iranian surveillance plane last week video-recorded and photographed the vessel near the Strait of Hormuz, in a bid to cast its navy as having a powerful role in the region's waters.

    Iran has threatened to close the route in possible retaliation to new U.S. and European economic sanctions, a tactic the U.S. already has said it would not tolerate.

    About one-sixth of the world's oil passes on tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, and analysts have warned the price of Brent crude could temporarily jump to as high as $210 if the strait is closed.

    Reuters

    Iranian military personnel participate in the Velayat-90 war game in unknown location near the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran Dec. 30.

    U.S. officials have said the Navy's Fifth Fleet, based in nearby Bahrain, is prepared to defend the shipping route.

    White House officials said Iran's threat showed Tehran was increasingly isolated internationally, faced economic problems from to sanctions and wants to divert attention from its deepening problems.

    "It reflects the fact that Iran is in a position of weakness," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters Tuesday.

    State news agency IRNA quoted Iranian army chief Ataollah Salehi as saying: "Iran will not repeat its warning ... the enemy's carrier has been moved to the Sea of Oman because of our drill. I recommend and emphasize to the American carrier not to return to the Persian Gulf.

    AFP/Iran state media

    The USS John C. Stennis, pictured as it allegedly went "inside the maneuver zone" where Iranian ships were conducting war games in the Gulf, according to Iranian officials who supplied the image.

    "I advise, recommend and warn them (the Americans) over the return of this carrier to the Persian Gulf because we are not in the habit of warning more than once," he said.

    Britain's defense secretary warned Iran Thursday that any attempt to block the key global oil passageway the Strait of Hormuz would be illegal and unsuccessful — hinting at a robust international response.

    During his  first visit to the Pentagon for talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Philip Hammond told the Atlantic Council in Washington that the presence of British and American naval ships in the Persian Gulf would ensure the route is kept open for trade.

    More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

      NBC's Jim Miklaszewski and msnbc.com staff contributed to this report.

  • Will Iran make good on its threat against US?

    Iran warned U.S. aircraft carrier Stennis not to return to the Persian Gulf, but U.S. officials rejected the threat. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski has more.

    By Sevil Omer, msnbc.com

    Should the United States blink with Iran? Tehran has warned Washington against returning an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf. The White House contends Tehran’s threat is just an attempt to deflect attention from the Islamic republic’s domestic problems and says the Navy will continue operations in the Gulf.

    What happens next?

    We turned to Graham T. Allison, a leading analyst of U.S. national security and defense policy in nuclear weapons and terrorism at Harvard, and Qamar-ul Huda, a scholar of Islam and theology, from the U.S. Institute of Peace. In emails to msnbc.com, they shared some thoughts on Iran's war of words -- and the possibility of an escalation.

    Belfer Center

    Graham T. Allison of the Belfer Center.

    Iran has threatened to take military action if the U.S. keeps sending aircraft carriers into the Gulf. What is the probability Iran would make good on its threat?

    ALLISON: Low. Iran must be aware that the U.S. will continue to send aircraft carriers into international waters regardless of Iranian threats, and that any direct military confrontation would not end well for Tehran. However, we face the risk of unauthorized or low-level skirmishes between U.S. and Iranian naval forces escalating into a broader conflict. 

    HUDA: In March 2007, Iran captured 15 British sailors and marines from the Strait of Hormuz, and the government allowed the British embassy to be ransacked by protesters. Since the November 2011 United Nations report found that Iran has worked and may be working on attaining nuclear weapons, the United States and its allies are pressing harder to enforce sanctions against Iran. Essentially, relations with Iran have gone from bad to worse in a matter of five months.

    Courtesy Qamar-ul Huda

    Qamar-ul Huda of the U.S. Institute of Peace.

    If the recent past is any indicator of events, Iran's threats must be taken seriously. A military attack by Iran against the U.S. would have a devastating strategic consequence for Iran. About less than 25 percent of U.S. imported oil comes from the Gulf region; however, China's oil supplies would be significantly threatened by a military conflict.

    Iran's threats are not only directed at the U.S., but to the already unstable global economy. With the uncertainty of EU financial industry and U.S.'s weak economy, Iran is using this moment to test Western interests in the region.

    What does Iran have to gain from a military confrontation with the U.S.?

    ALLISON: It is certainly not in the rational self-interest of the Iranian state to provoke a confrontation with America, whose military dwarfs that of Iran. However, it is likely that certain elements within the regime would welcome such a confrontation, as they feel that American military action could bolster support for their government and distract the Iranian people from growing economic problems.

    HUDA: Iran's military confrontation with the U.S. allows them to rein in dissenters, reformers and liberals, and embolden the power of the hardliners in Iran, namely the Revolutionary Guard institutions. Iranian hardliners welcome an escalation of conflict with the U.S. and the West because it allows them to consolidate their internal power. The elite of hardliners are still from the 1979 revolution period, and they understand that an anti-Western narrative is their core asset. With the recent shooting down of a U.S. spy drone near the Iran-Afghanistan border, and the capture of an [alleged] Afghan-American spy in Iran, Iranian hardliners in the government are trying to deflect the nuclear issue and simultaneously make a case of preventing a U.S.-led confrontation. Internally, Iran is using recent political events, including the Arab Spring protests, as justification to defend national sovereignty.

    Iran has purchased from the Chinese and Russians sophisticated midget submarines, mobile anti-ship cruise missiles, and a fleet of small fast boats capable of naval warfare. Knowing their asymmetric  military power, and visible soft power in the Middle East, Iran will promptly leverage their power against Western interests.  

    What does the U.S. have to gain from a military confrontation with Iran?

    ALLISON: Although some argue that U.S. military action against Iran would be a relatively painless way to delay its nuclear program and maybe even inspire a popular uprising, my best judgment is that an attack is as likely to advance the date on which Iran tests a bomb as to delay it. A military confrontation with Iran would also overturn the chessboard in the Middle East, making America (and Israel) the issue for most of the people in the street and risk retaliation that could bring about a wider regional war. 

    HUDA: The U.S. maintains that their military exercises are according to international maritime conventions and for the security of the region. By moving forward to counteract Iranian threats, the U.S. reassures their allies of their commitment to the region, and more importantly, it bolsters the U.S.-Gulf states alliance of limiting Iranian aggression. While a military escalation with Iran will lead to a deeper cold war with Iran, there is no other way to ensure that Iran will draw back. 

    Allison is the director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard's John F. Kennedy Center of Government. For three decades, he has been a leading analyst of U.S. national security and defense policy with a special interest in nuclear weapons, terrorism and decision-making. He served as assistant secretary for The U.S. Department of Defense in the first Clinton Administration.

    Huda is a senior program officer in the Religion and Peacemaking Center and scholar of Islam at U.S. Institute of Peace. He teaches conflict resolution, Islamic theology, Islam and Western studies at Georgetown University.

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