Iran Closely Watching US Warships in Persian GulfIran is closely watching the activities of US-British warships deployed in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, the official IRNA news agency reported Sunday.Hamid Valamanesh, an Iranian navy commander, was quoted as saying that among the 41 warships arriving in the waters so far, 21 are moored between the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, and the 20 others are in the Gulf of Oman, some 72.4 kilometers from the coast of Iran's southeastern city of Chabahar in the Sistan Baluchestan Province. He added that two other American aircraft carriers are also stationed in the waters belonging to Pakistan. The worships have been called upon to participate in possible retaliatory strikes on Afghanistan, whose ruling Taliban regime is accused by the United States of harboring Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect of the terror attacks in New York and Washington on September 11. "The Islamic republic's navy is observing their activities day and night," Valamanesh noted. Iran, which has not had diplomatic relations with the U.S. for the past 21 years, has condemned the terrorist attacks, while warning against possible U.S. reprisals against Afghanistan. |
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