Iran says its navy forced US submarine to surface in Gulf waters

An Iranian official says Iran’s navy obliged a US submarine to surface as it entered the Gulf “violating its border” in the latest report of an apparent confrontation between Iranian and US forces in the region.

“The US submarine was approaching while submerged, but the Iranian submarine Fateh detected it and carried out … manoeuvres to force it to surface as it went through the Strait [of Hormuz]. It had also entered into our territorial waters but … it corrected its course after being warned,” navy commander Shahram Irani told state television on Thursday.

“This submarine was doing its best, using all its capacities, to pass in total silence and without being detected,” Irani said. “We will certainly reflect to international bodies the fact that it had violated our border.”

Earlier this month, the US Navy said the nuclear-powered submarine Florida, equipped with a guided missile system, was operating in the Middle East in support of its Fifth Fleet based in Bahrain.

There was no immediate comment from the US military to Iran’s remarks.

In early April, the Iranian navy said it identified and warned off a US reconnaissance plane outside the mouth of the Gulf.

In 2021, US and Iranian warships had a tense encounter in the Gulf waters when a ship commanded by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) cut in front of the USCGC Monomoy, causing the US Coast Guard vessel to come to an abrupt stop with its engine smoking.