March 27, 2024
Iran Piracy in the Arabian Gulf
Featured MENA News Opinion

Iran Piracy in the Arabian Gulf

By Dr. Frank Musmar

The recent deadly suicide UAV attack against the Israeli commercial vessel Mercer Street in the Gulf of Oman last week, a British citizen and a Romanian national were killed, is an eye opener for the global community to take action against Iran. The USA president Joe Biden policies and through negligence in the Middle East and especially towards Iran allowed dangers to fester. Iran’s dream is to be a powerhouse driven to unite the Gulf region under its yoke, harvest the resources it acquired to build up martial might, and constitute a menace to the New World. A proactive U.S. involvement would keep predators from gestating in the first place. Donald Trump was an onshore balancer that made common cause with opponents of aggression ahead of time.

The Iranian strike on Mercer Street marked the first-known fatal attack (killed two crew members from the United Kingdom and Romania) after years of assaults on commercial shipping. The latest Iranian attacks proved that Iran is a menace to Israel, the region, and the entire world. Unless the international community agrees to end Iran’s aggression and threats, the regime will continue to threaten the most crucial sea navigation routes used by oil tankers. Israeli Prime Minister Mr. Bennett, the American Secretary of the States Mr. Blinken, and the British Foreign Secretary Mr. Raab are confident that Iran carried out the attack using multiple drones.

Iran started targeting ships in the summer of 2019, about a year after then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers. The last attack was on August 3. Britain’s maritime trade agency reported a “potential hijack” by Iranian-backed forces that seized an oil tanker, “Panama-flagged asphalt/bitumen tanker Asphalt Princess” in the Gulf off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.

The recent attacks indicate that Iran is not interested in the JCPOA and uses it to play the world and the USA. Tehran has been aggressively testing the White House with attacks on shipping in the Arabian Gulf. Iran sanctions are not effective the way it was during President Trump’s era. In 2020, the sharp and sustained rise in oil price and the volume of Iranian crude exports gave Tehran billions of dollars in unanticipated revenue. Furthermore, Iran made enormous progress in its nuclear program, bringing it to within weeks of a nuclear breakout and the capability of building a bomb.

Iran’s attacks on ships in the Arabian Gulf are targeted to increase the oil prices, helping Iran collect billions of dollars in unanticipated revenue. Oil prices remain flat at $72.74 in the wake of the attacks; however, combined with COVID-19 delta variant fears, keep a lid on market expectations. 

The United States coordinating with the world community must target the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval bases, factories assembling or producing parts for military drones, or facilities supporting the export of weaponry to Iranian proxies in Iraq, Yemen, Syria, or Lebanon. 

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