An attempt by pirates to hijack an Iranian oil tanker was foiled by the timely action of the Iranian Navy's fleet of warships.

Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Gholam Reza Khadem Biqam announced on Tuesday that the tanker was sailing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, when it came under attack.

But after the tanker sought help, the Iranian naval forces rushed to the scene and thwarted the attack carried out by four pirate speedboats, he added.
The Iranian Navy dispatched several fleets of warships to the Gulf of Aden and North of the Indian Ocean to protect the country's cargo ships and oil tankers against pirates.

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 through the Suez Canal.

Source: FNA