Iranian ship, believed to be spy vessel, damaged by mine off Yemen
The Iranian Foreign Ministry said its ship suffered minor damage from a limpet mine attack, which The New York Times reports was carried out by Israel, off Yemen.
An Iranian ship that US officials believe is used for covert military purposes was attacked off the coast of Yemen, Iran’s Foreign Ministry confirmed Wednesday. The incident occurred the same day Iranian officials met with parties to the nuclear agreement in Vienna.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had been using the Saviz for intelligence collection since 2017, US officials told The Wall Street Journal. The vessel is classified by Iran as a cargo ship, but imagery from ship-tracking websites reportedly shows surveillance equipment on the Saviz.
The Saviz is based in the southern Red Sea near Yemen’s western coast. Iran is supporting the Houthi rebels, who overran parts of Yemen in 2014 and are now fighting a Saudi-led military coalition that intervened the next year to restore the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency reported that Tuesday’s attack had been caused by a limpet mine were attached to the ship’s hull.
