Tag Archives: Houthi

Iran’s New Missile Corvette Could Reshape IRGC Naval Doctrine

Iran’s New Missile Corvette Could Reshape IRGC Naval Doctrine

An aritsits rendering of a Shahid Soleimani-class missile corvette. HI Sutton image used with permission

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGC-N) is building a new class of warships, as first reported in Naval News last week based on satellite imagery. The catamaran design appears relatively large, modern and capable compared to existing IRGC commercial-based designs. Read More

Lawyer: Destroyer CO Removed for Making Plaque from Seized Weapon  

Lawyer: Destroyer CO Removed for Making Plaque from Seized Weapon  

The guided-missile destroyer USS Forrest Sherman (DDG 98) transits the Gulf of Tadjoura on Nov. 17, 2019. Forrest Sherman is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability in the Central Region, connecting the Mediterranean and Pacific through the Western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points. US Navy photo.

This post has been updated to include links to U.S. law and DoD policy on captured weapons.

The commander of a guided-missile destroyer was relieved of command after attempting to make a morale-boosting plaque from a captured weapon for his crew to celebrate the 2019 interdiction of an Iranian weapons shipment, an attorney representing the commander told USNI News on Wednesday. Read More

Top Stories 2020: International Naval Operations

Top Stories 2020: International Naval Operations

Motor Tanker (M/T) Wila, a merchant vessel in international waters en-route to the UAE port of Khor Fakkan, in the Gulf of Oman, was boarded by armed Iranian personnel who fast roped aboard the ship from an Iranian Sea King helicopter as it hovered above on Aug. 12, 2020. US Navy Photo

This post is part of a series of stories looking back at the top naval news from 2020.

Like the U.S., international navies grappled with not only the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic but regional security concerns from China’s naval expansion and operations in the Pacific to Iranian and Russian operations in the Middle East. Read More

VIDEO: Iran Inducts New Special Operations Ship  

VIDEO: Iran Inducts New Special Operations Ship  

HI Sutton Image used with permission

Emblazoned with the pennant number “1” in on its superstructure, Shahid Roudaki joined the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) as its latest and most visible warship during a ceremony held in Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday. Read More

Iranian Spy Ship Commands Strategic Position on Vital Oil Route

Iranian Spy Ship Commands Strategic Position on Vital Oil Route

HI Sutton Image used with permission

The Red Sea forms a physical and geopolitical choke point on much of the world’s trade. At its northern end the Suez Canal constricts the flow of ships, and at the southern end the Bab el-Mandeb Strait does. Millions of barrels of oil and other critically important goods transit the Red Sea every year, much of it destined for North America and Europe. Read More

Pentagon Officials Call Out Iranian-Backed Weapons Smugglers

Pentagon Officials Call Out Iranian-Backed Weapons Smugglers

USS Normandy (CG 60), in accordance with international law, boarded a stateless dhow in the Arabian Sea and interdicted an illicit shipment of advanced weapons and weapon components intended for the Houthis in Yemen, Feb. 9, 2020. US Navy Photo

THE PENTAGON — Recognizing Iranian-backed weapons smugglers have the advantage evading U.S. patrols, and the Pentagon is taking to publicly calling out Tehran for helping fuel the ongoing conflict in Yemen.

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VIDEO: USS Normandy Seizes Cache Of Iranian-Made Weapons in Arabian Sea

VIDEO: USS Normandy Seizes Cache Of Iranian-Made Weapons in Arabian Sea

USS Normandy (CG 60), in accordance with international law, boarded a stateless dhow in the Arabian Sea and interdicted an illicit shipment of advanced weapons and weapon components intended for the Houthis in Yemen, Feb. 9, 2020. US Navy Photo

Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Normandy (CG-60) seized a cache of Iranian-made anti-tank missiles and other munitions aboard a dhow in the Arabian Sea over the weekend.

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