Iranian Boats Threaten US Ships in Gulf

Five Iranian speedboats operated by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards challenged and threatened three US warships in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf on Sunday. The Iranians also dropped several suspicious boxes over the side as they approached the US ships at high speed. Furthermore, the speedboats sent a radio message to the Americans, “I am coming at you, you will explode in a couple of minutes.” The US commander was about to order his vessels to fire when the Iranians turned away at a distance of less than 200 meters. The missing word in each sentence here is “allegedly.”

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard, much like Stalin’s NKVD, is a state within a state, and it took over all operations of the Iranian navy back in November. The Guards own or otherwise control factories, banks, and other economic assets that aren’t in the money-grubbing hands of the clergy (a distinct but overlapping set of vampires). They call their own shots, and so it is quite possible that they made this challenge without the knowledge or approval of Tehran’s official government.

At the same time, one must remember that the only reports about the incident are from the Iranian government and the US Navy, neither of whom are unbiased and disinterested observers of the security situation. Basing his remarks on the USN’s story White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe cautioned, “We urge the Iranians to refrain from such provocative actions that could lead to a dangerous incident in the future.” On the other side, Mohammad Ali Hosseini, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, told the official IRNA news agency, “The example that happened on [Sunday] was similar to previous cases and is an ordinary and natural issue. This is an ordinary issue that happens for the two sides every once in a while and after the identification of the two sides, the issue is resolved.”

Those familiar with another American Navy incident in 1964 in the Gulf of Tonkin will recall that America’s involvement in the Vietnam War moved rapidly forward after that affair. On August 2 and 4, torpedo boats under Hanoi’s flag attacked US ships. Decades after the clash, the world learned that the attack of August 2 on the USS Maddox was not “unprovoked” but rather was the result of aggressive intelligence gathering by the destroy. And the August 4 attack never occurred.

While Tehran and Washington have been making calming noises of late, one must remember that in both governments there are those who do not want to play nice. Clearly, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards have many members in that group. At the same time, one wouldn’t be surprised to learn people in the White House or Pentagon feel the same way. If it’s a matter of believing one party or the other, the word “allegedly” starts to matter a great deal.

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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