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Iranian "Serious Provocation" of U.S. Navy

07 Jan 2008 - 12:00 noon CST

Pentagon says ships harassed by Iran

WASHINGTON, DC/STRAIT OF HORMUZ: In what U.S. officials called a serious provocation, Iranian boats harassed and provoked three U.S. Navy ships in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, threatening to explode the American vessels.

U.S. forces were on the verge of firing on the Iranian boats in the early Sunday incident, when the boats -- believed to be from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's navy -- turned and moved away, a Pentagon official said. "It is the most serious provocation of this sort that we've seen yet," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record. Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman called it a "serious incident. This is something that deserves an explanation."

Iran's Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the weekend incident was "something normal" and was resolved.

National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the United States urges the Iranians "to refrain from such provocative actions that could lead to a dangerous incident in the future..."

-- Source/continues at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080107/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_navy_iran_19