The Iranian warship named Shahid Bayandor returned to Iranian waters after a 36-day mission against Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
News ID: 4754
Publish Date: 31 January 2011 - 23:45
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TEHRAN, Jan. 31, 2011 - A senior Iranian navy commander praised the country's fleet of warships deployed in the Gulf of Aden for accomplishing its mission successfully. |
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Commander of the Navy's second naval zone, Rear Admiral Hossein Ashrafi said on Monday that Iranian forces foiled more than 60 attempts against Iran's commercial ships by pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
He made the remark in the ceremony held to welcome Iranian navy personnel from a mission to the Gulf of Aden.
"Conducting successful missions by Iranian navy in the Sea of Oman and north Indian Ocean showed that the navy is not on the sidelines, but it is in the center of fighting against pirates," the commander noted.
The Iranian warship named Shahid Bayandor returned to Iranian waters after a 36-day mission against Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
Iran on Wednesday dispatched its 12th fleet of warships to the Gulf of Aden.
Navy commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said Iran is seeking to display its military power in the international waters.
The Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008, when Somali raiders hijacked the Iranian-chartered cargo ship, MV Delight, off the coast of Yemen.
According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia against the pirates and even with prior notice to Somali government enter the territorial waters of that country in pursuit of Somali sea pirates.
The Gulf of Aden - which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea - is an important energy corridor, particularly because Persian Gulf oil is shipped to the West via the Suez Canal.
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