Devendra Kumar
Iran has issued a stern warning to the United States, threatening to target two commercial cargo ships, the Behshad and Saviz, if they are used as floating armories by US commandos. The warning comes as tensions between the two nations escalate due to recent US airstrikes in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, which have targeted militias backed by Iran. The US has launched a massive air campaign against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, striking areas across six provinces and hitting underground missile arsenals, launch sites, and helicopters used by the rebels.
Iran has accused the Behshad and Saviz, both registered with a Tehran-based company sanctioned by the US Treasury, of serving as spy positions for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The vessels have been loitering in the Red Sea off Yemen for years and have been suspected of serving as maritime bases and weapons transhipment points for the Guard. In 2017, Saudi Arabia described the Saviz as a maritime base and weapons transshipment point for the Guard, staffed by men in military fatigues.
Iran has publicly acknowledged that the vessels are “floating armories” but has denied any involvement in Somali piracy in the region. The Behshad recently travelled south into the Gulf of Aden and is now docked in Djibouti, near a Chinese military base, while the Saviz is currently in the Indian Ocean, near where the US alleges Iranian drone attacks have recently targeted shipping.
The situation has raised tensions in the region, which has been on high alert since Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip escalated tensions across the Middle East and raised fears of a regional conflict breaking out. The US has warned that any further attacks on international shipping and naval vessels by the Houthis or other groups will be met with further consequences. British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has also called on the Houthis to stop their attacks.
The situation highlights the risks of a wider conflict breaking out in the region, with Iran and the US locked in a shadow war that has seen various attempts to undermine each other’s interests in the region. The US has launched a massive air campaign against the Houthis, and the situation remains volatile. The warning from Iran is a clear indication that the country is willing to take aggressive measures to defend its interests, and the US and its allies will need to weigh the costs and risks of further escalating the situation.