Iranian cleric Mohammad Ali Mousavi Jazayeri warned Britain on Saturday about Tehran’s retaliation for the capture of an Iranian supertanker by Royal Marines in Gibraltar. “I am openly saying that Britain should be scared of Iran’s retaliatory measures over the illegal seizure of the Iranian oil tanker,” said the cleric, who is a member of the powerful clerical body, the Assembly of Experts. British Royal Marines seized the supertanker Grace 1 on Thursday for trying to take oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions, a dramatic step that drew Tehran’s fury and could escalate its confrontation with the West. It comes as British flagged supertanker Pacfic Voyager is passing through the Persian Gulf this weekend. Tehran yesterday threatened to seize British shipping in the Gulf in a direct response to the dramatic swoop by the marines with helicopters and fast boats in the early hours of Thursday. Yesterday, Moshem Rezaei said Tehran had a “duty” to respond to the seizure of the Grace 1 over suspicions it was carrying oil to Bashar Assad’s Syrian regime in breach of EU sanctions. A detachment of Royal Marines from 42 Commando boarded the vessel on Thursday in a joint operation with the Royal Gibraltar Police. Writing on Twitter, Mr Rezaei, who led the Guard during the 1980s “tanker war” in the Gulf, said: “If England does not release the Iranian oil tanker, the duty… (of Iran) is to respond and seize one English oil tanker.” The warning came after Britain’s ambassador in Tehran, Rob Macaire, was summoned to the Iranian Foreign Ministry to explain the Government’s actions. In a statement, the Gibraltar government said it had taken the decision to intercept the vessel and was not acting at the behest of any other country. It follows a claim by the Spanish authorities that the seizure of the tanker was made at the request of the United States which had been tracking its movements. “There has been no political request at any time from any government that the Gibraltar government should act or not act, on one basis or another,” the Gibraltar government said in a statement. “The decisions of Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar were taken totally independently, based on breaches of existing law and not at all based on extraneous political considerations.” A spokesman said members of the crew were continuing to be questioned as inquiries continued aboard the ship. The 28 crew members – mainly Indian, Pakistani and Ukrainian nationals – were being interviewed as witnesses and were not being questioned under criminal procedures the spokesman added. The incident has occurred at a time of heightened tensions between the US and its allies and Iran over the unravelling nuclear deal between Tehran and leading international powers, including the UK. Last month President Donald Trump said he had made a last-minute decision to call off air strikes in retaliation for the shooting down by Iran of an unmanned US drone over the Gulf. Earlier thi
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday Britain would face “consequences” over the seizure of an Iranian oil tanker. He also said Iran’s increase in uranium enrichment was for peaceful aims, the semi-official news agency Tasnim reported. Iran has demanded the immediate release of the tanker Grace 1, which British Royal Marines boarded off the coast of Gibraltar last week and seized over accusations it was breaking sanctions by taking oil to Syria. “You [Britain] are the initiator of insecurity and you will realise the consequences later,” Rouhani was quoted by Tasnim as saying after a cabinet meeting. Rouhani also said Iran’s decision to increase uranium enrichment would produce fuel for power plants and serve other peaceful aims, and that it was within the framework of Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. It comes as Britain deployed Royal Navy warship HMS Montrose into the Strait of Hormuz to protect UK shipping after Iran threatened to seize them in revenge. She is believed escorted oil tanker Pacific Voyager as she sailed through the piece of sea that separates the United Arab Emirates from Iran. The tanker had to be checked on by UK officials over the weekend as she stopped close to Iranian waters. The waterway has been the scene of five attacks of tankers this year amid a renewed flaring of tensions in the Gulf. Iran has been squaring up to the West as it reels over the scrapping of the so-called nuclear deal by the US, which traded a pledge not to develop nukes for eased sanctions. The ayatollah has been demanding that nations such as Britain and its European allies pick-up the slack as Donald Trump’s administration imposes crushing new penalties. Britain however infuriated Iran last week when the Royal Marines seized the Grace 1 supertanker as she entered the Mediterranean. Commandos took the vessel without a shot being fired as it is suspected of breaching EU sanctions on the brutal Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. Iran responded by threatening to seize British ships in retaliation amid fears of a new tanker war in the Gulf. Five oil tankers and a cargo ship have been attacked in the Gulf in the past two months. Tehran denies any involvement in the attacks, but they have been blamed by the US. And in an escalation, Iran shot down a US drone – nearly prompting a limited strike by Washington before an 11th hour U-turn by Trump. Iran has since broken its nuclear agreement by stepping up its enrichment of uranium. Tehran has said the measures are just for power plant fuel, and will not be used for the development of nukes. The foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany, plus the foreign affairs chief of the European Union, said in a statement that Iran was “pursuing activities inconsistent with its commitments”. Trump’s administration argues the deal was too soft on Iran and it didn’t impact its missile programme of sponsor of terrorism.
BRITAIN should be “scared” about Tehran’s retaliation over the dramatic seizure of an Iranian supertanker by Royal Marines, a firebrand cleric warned today.
Mohammad Ali Mousavi Jazayeri hinted the Islamic Republic may strike back over the capture of the giant vessel, impounded over fears it was illegally shipping oil to Syria.
“I am openly saying that Britain should be scared of Iran’s retaliatory measures over the illegal seizure of the Iranian oil tanker,” said the cleric, a member of the powerful clerical body the Assembly of Experts.
