ID :
110238
Sun, 03/07/2010 - 13:28
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/110238
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Iran's 5th fleet of warships to Gulf of Aden returns home
BANDAR ABBAS, March 7 (MNA) - The Iranian Navy’s fifth fleet of warships returned home on Saturday after successfully carrying out its 44-day mission in the Gulf of Aden.
The fifth fleet of warships’ return to Iran was marked on Saturday in a welcome ceremony by Navy Commander Habibollah Sayyari in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
The Iranian Navy sent a fifth fleet of warships, which included two warships named ‘Lavan’ and ‘Chiro,’ to the Gulf of Aden on January 22 to defend the country's cargo ships and oil tankers against continued attacks by Somali pirates.
The first four fleets of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Navy secured safe passage for more than 1,000 cargo ships and oil tankers from the Gulf of Aden.
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.
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 through the Suez Canal.
According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia, even without prior notice to the Somali government, to provide protection against the pirates.
The fifth fleet of warships’ return to Iran was marked on Saturday in a welcome ceremony by Navy Commander Habibollah Sayyari in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
The Iranian Navy sent a fifth fleet of warships, which included two warships named ‘Lavan’ and ‘Chiro,’ to the Gulf of Aden on January 22 to defend the country's cargo ships and oil tankers against continued attacks by Somali pirates.
The first four fleets of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Navy secured safe passage for more than 1,000 cargo ships and oil tankers from the Gulf of Aden.
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.
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 through the Suez Canal.
According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia, even without prior notice to the Somali government, to provide protection against the pirates.
