Iranian Navy Troops Arrest 13 Pirates after Armed Clash

Iranian navy commandos thwarted an attempt by pirates to hijack a cargo ship in international waters and arrested 13 pirates after 48 hours of armed clashes, a senior navy commander said.

Speaking at a press conference, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari announced that the Iranian Navy has detained 13 pirates 3,000 kilometers off Iran’s territorial waters.

The pirates were captured in the Indian Ocean after they tried to seize a cargo ship loaded with commodities heading for Iran, the Iranian Navy commander said, adding that the detained pirates were being transferred to Iran.

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.