WASHINGTON — Small Iranian fast boats swarmed around massive U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf, and a man speaking heavily accented English threatened, “I am coming to you. … You will explode,” according to a video released Tuesday by the Pentagon.
The Iranian boats appeared to ignore repeated warnings from the U.S. ships, including horn blasts and radio transmissions, as the ships moved through the Strait of Hormuz into the Gulf.
In a four-minute, 20-second video, shot from the bridge of the destroyer USS Hopper, the small boats can be seen racing near the wake of the U.S. ships and crossing close to each other.
From the Hopper’s bridge, after spotting the approaching Iranian boats, a Navy crew member says over the radio: “This is coalition warship. I am engaged in transit passage in accordance with international law. I intend no harm. Over.”
Often uneven and shaky, the video condenses what Navy officials have said was a 20-minute or so confrontation early Sunday between three Navy warships and five Iranian fast boats. It ends with a blank screen, as only the audio of the Navy’s final warning can be heard, just after the voice warns that they are coming.
“Inbound small craft: You are approaching a coalition warship operating in international waters. Your identity is not known; your intentions are unclear,” the unidentified Navy crewman says. He then cautions the Iranians that if they do not steer clear they will be “subject to defensive measures.”
“Request that you alter course immediately to remain clear,” the crew member says.
After a pause, the man with the accent issues a final threat: “You will explode after (indecipherable) minutes.”
President Bush on Tuesday denounced the incident as a “provocative act.”
“It is a dangerous situation,” Bush said during a White House news conference. “They should not have done it, pure and simple. . . . I don’t know what their thinking was, but I’m telling you what my thinking was. I think it was a provocative act.”
The top Navy commander in the Gulf said the Iranian fleet of high-speed boats “maneuvered aggressively” and then fled as the American ship commanders were preparing to open fire, Vice Adm. Kevin Cosgriff said. No shots were fired.
Cosgriff disputed Iranian claims that the incident was a routine encounter, saying Iran’s “provocative” actions were “deadly serious” to the U.S. military.
Many Arab countries fear the Iranian-U.S. rivalry could erupt into a military confrontation.
