NAVY ESCORTING U.S.-FLAGGED SHIPS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  Sailors assigned to the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Farragut prepare to launch a MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 46, April 15, 2015. Farragut is deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations supporting Operation Inherent Resolve strike operations in Iraq and Syria as directed, as well as maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the region. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jackie Hart.

Navy to Escort U.S.-Flagged Ships in Strait of Hormuz
By Cheryl Pellerin

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – Ships from U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain have begun accompanying U.S.-flagged maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, Defense Department officials said.

Sufficient U.S. naval forces are assigned to the command to meet the requirements of the accompanying mission, officials said, adding that Navcent will coordinate with shipping-industry representatives to ensure the operations go smoothly and efficiently.

The mission was prompted by two incidents this week in the Strait of Hormuz in which Iranian navy patrol vessels harassed commercial motor vessels traversing the strait.

On April 24, four Iranian patrol boats approached the U.S.-flagged merchant ship Maersk Kensington, Pentagon spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren said during an April 29 briefing.

First Incident

“The boats came astern of the Kensington and followed her for 15 or 20 minutes in actions that the Kensington’s master interpreted as aggressive,” he added.
There was no U.S. military involvement at the time, but after the incident, the ship's master filed a report with Navcent, Warren said.

“It's difficult to know exactly why the Iranians are operating this way,” Warren said. “We certainly call on them to respect all the internationally established rules of freedom of navigation, the law of the sea to which they are a signatory, and other established protocols.”

Then on April 28 at about 2:05 a.m. EST, Iranian patrol vessels approached the M/V Maersk Tigris, a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo vessel, Warren said in a briefing that day.

Maersk Tigris

The Republic of the Marshall Islands is a sovereign nation for which the United States has full authority and responsibility for security and defense under the terms of an amended security compact that entered into force in 2004.

The United States and the Marshall Islands have full diplomatic relations, according to the U.S. State Department, and the security compact between the two nations includes matters related to vessels flying the Marshallese flag.
The Maersk Tigris was in Iranian territorial waters that also contain internationally recognized commercial shipping lanes, Warren said, adding that the Strait of Hormuz is in Iranian territorial waters, which is within 12 miles of the Iranian coast. But because the narrow strait is recognized as containing international shipping lanes, he added, the principle of “innocent passage” is applied, so ships that abide by international rules of the sea are authorized to pass through the strait.

Innocent Passage

Warren said no Americans are among the 30 or so people aboard the Maersk Tigris.

The Tigris was transiting inbound, or north, in the Strait of Hormuz, between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman in the Arabian Sea. The strait is one of the world’s major strategic choke points, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

“The ship's master was contacted [by one of the Iranian ships] and directed to proceed further into Iranian territorial waters,” Warren said during an April 28 briefing. “He declined, and one of the [Iranian] craft fired shots across the bridge of the Maersk Tigris.”

Afterward, the master complied with the Iranian demand and motored into Iranian waters near Larak Island, Warren said. Larak Island is off the coast of Iran in the Persian Gulf. The master then issued a distress call.

Boarding the Tigris

Warren said initial reports indicated that members of the Iranian navy had boarded the Tigris. Navcent, having picked up the distress signal, directed the USS Farragut, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, to proceed to the nearest location to the Maersk Tigris, Warren said. Navcent also directed a Navy maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft to observe the interaction between the Maersk vessel and the Iranian craft, he added.

The Tigris’s destination, according to a marine-traffic website, was Jebel Ali, a port town 22 miles southwest of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

Maritime Security Operations

During an April 29 briefing, Warren said the USS Farragut was operating along with three U.S. Navy Cyclone-class coastal patrol ships -- the USS Typhoon, the USS Thunderbolt and the USS Firebolt -- all stationed in Manama, Bahrain.

The ships are conducting maritime security operations, maintaining continual U.S. presence and supporting the monitoring of the Maersk Tigris, which is at anchor near Larak Island and Bandar Abbas, he said.

“As is always the case, these assets give commanders options,” Warren said, adding that the U.S. government is in discussions with the Marshall Islands on the way ahead.

Warren said the Navy ships’ mission is to conduct maritime security operations, “but what they’re doing is keeping an eye on things.”
Traversing the Strait

All of the ships are operating in the Persian Gulf, in the Strait of Hormuz, near where the Maersk Tigris incident occurred, he added. They are close enough to the Maersk Tigris, Warren said, “that they'll be able to respond if a response is required.”

“Two [incidents] within four or five days has certainly created a situation where maritime cargo vessels presumably would have to consider the risks of traversing that strait,” he added.

Warren said that Iran's motive is not clear to the Defense Department and that DoD is not in contact with the Iranian government.

U.S. TERRORIST DESIGNATIONS FOR THE ABDALLAH AZZAM BRIGADEES

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Terrorist Designations of the Abdallah Azzam Brigades
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
January 24, 2013
The Department of State designated the Abdallah Azzam Brigades (AAB) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under section 1(b) of Executive Order 13224. The Abdallah Azzam Brigades (AAB), a militant organization based in both Lebanon and the Arabian Peninsula, was formed in 2009. AAB is led by Saleh al-Qar’awi, who was designated by the Department of State under E.O. 13224. The Department of State also designated AAB’s bomb maker, Abu Jabal, under E.O. 13224 on November 22, 2011.

AAB carried out a July 2010 attack on the Japanese-owned oil tanker M/V M.Star in the Strait of Hormuz. According to a statement released online, AAB claimed that the attack was carried out by its Arabian Peninsula Branch, which calls itself the Yusuf al-’Uyayri Battalions of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades. AAB has repeatedly articulated its intent to carry out attacks against Western interests in the Middle East. In 2010, for instance, the group expressed an interest in kidnapping U.S. and British tourists in the Arabian Peninsula.

In addition, AAB is responsible for numerous indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. These attacks, which have been launched from within Lebanon by the Ziyad al-Jarrah Battalions of the Abdallah Azzam Brigades, have targeted population centers in northern Israel.

The consequences of these designations include a prohibition against knowingly providing material support or resources to, or engaging in transactions with, the Abdallah Azzam Brigades, and the freezing of all property and interest in property of the organization that are in the United States, or come within the United States, or the control of U.S. persons. The Department of State took these actions in consultation with the Departments of Justice and Treasury.

JAPANESE OWNED OIL TANKER AND U.S. NAVAL SHIP COLLIDE IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ

120812-N-XO436-025 ARABIAN GULF (Aug. 12, 2012) Guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) is damaged in a collision with the Japanese owned bulk oil tanker M/V Otowasan in the Strait of Hormuz, Aug., 12. No personnel on either vessel were reported injured. Porter is on a scheduled deployment to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility conducting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jonathan Sunderman/Released)
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 
Update: No Injuries in Strait of Hormuz Collision

From U.S. Nava
l Forces Central Command Public Affairs
NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY, Bahrain (NNS) -- No one was hurt when a U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer and a large Japanese owned merchant vessel collided near the Strait of Hormuz Aug. 12.


The collision between USS Porter (DDG 78) and the Panamanian-flagged bulk oil tanker M/V Otowasan occurred at approximately 1:00 a.m. local time.

Porter transited under its own power to Jebel Ali, UAE and is now pierside for assessment and repair.


The incident is under investigation.

USS Porter is on a scheduled deployment to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility conducting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts.

NAVY WORKING TO KEEP STRAIT OF HORMUZ OPEN

The following excerpt is from a U.S. Department of Defense American Forces Press e-mail:

Navy Looks to Bolster Capabilities in Persian Gulf

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2012 - The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global choke point and the U.S. Navy is ensuring it has all the capabilities needed for this transit point to remain open, Navy Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, chief of naval operations, said today.

The admiral told the Defense Writers' Group that the Navy is beefing up capabilities in the Persian Gulf, through which much of the world's oil flows.

On one side of the strait are U.S. allies Oman and the United Arab Emirates. On the other side is Iran, whose leaders have threatened to shut down the strategic body of water.

Greenert spoke with Marine Corps Gen. James N. Mattis, commander of U.S. Central Command, soon after he became CNO in September 2010. Mattis said there were capabilities he needed more of, the admiral recalled.

Greenert went to the region and assessed what the Navy needed "to set the theater." He was aboard the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis as it exited the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz.

"I got a good look at the situation," the admiral said. "A lot of the Iranian navy was out there ... not really threatening, but being vigilant, and I thought through that."

He met with Central Command and Navy leaders and laid out what more is needed in the region.

Greenert said he will double the number of mine warfare assets in the region, including mine sweepers -- going from four ships to eight -- and anti-mine aircraft in the form of four more CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters.

The admiral also wants to increase the readiness of the forces in the region. "If I have four out there, how many are ready to go on any given day?" he said. "I wanted to make sure we are good on that and it includes spare parts, maintenance and contractor support."

Greenert said the Navy also is sending more underwater unmanned autonomous mine neutralization units to the region. "They are effective, they work well and our British partners know how to use them as well," he said.

For ships sailing through the strait, the Navy is providing more infrared and electro-optical capabilities. "We want to make sure that all the ships that deploy have the same configuration on board and the crews are proficient," the admiral said.

Navy forces need more short-range defenses in the region, Greenert said. It is a constrained area, he noted, and while carrier battle groups have excellent long-range defenses, they need something more. "It's like being in an alley with a rifle, and maybe what you need is a sawed-off shotgun," he said.

The Navy is looking at placing Mark 38 Gatling guns aboard the escorts or the carriers themselves, the admiral said.

"We have five patrol craft. They are 200-foot vessels that are armed with small arms. There are relatively short-range missiles out there -- roughly four miles -- and they are pretty effective according to special operations command," he said. "I want to look and see if they are compatible with our [patrol craft] ... so they are a more effective, more lethal vessel."

There are five patrol craft in the United States, three more coming back to the Navy from the Coast Guard and five in the Persian Gulf, Greenert said

"I want to move toward upgrading the PCs in the United States with Gatling guns and put them in Bahrain, ultimately, and we'll have 10 [in the Gulf]," the admiral said.

Within a year, most of the capabilities will be in place in region, he said.