According to two American military officials, a U.S. Navy ship fired warning shots at an armed Iranian patrol boat on Tuesday in the Northern part of the Persian Gulf.

According to the defense, familiar with the details of the incident, the Iranian ship, believed to be controlled by the Corps of Iran's revolutionary guards, approached and swam 150 yards from a patrol of the USS Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt was accompanied by the Vella Gulf, which is a guided missile cruiser of the Ticonderoga class and two ships of the U.S. coast guard.

The Iranians have not responded to any warning from the American ship, including radiosonde, the firing of torches and five short blows on the whistle of the U.S. Navy ship that is an internationally recognized signal for danger, officials said. One of the officials said the Navy ship was released warning shots into the water because of concerns about the possibility of a collision.

One of the officials said that the Iranian ship stopped provocative actions, but he stayed in the area for a few hours. According to officials of defense, in the immediate vicinity of the ship there were several US Navy ships during the incident, conducting routine patrol operations in international waters.

The Iranian revolutionary guard said that she "tore a provocative move by the American military ship against patrol boats of Iran in the Persian Gulf", the statement said, the official news Agency of Iran IRNA. The statement said that the US warship was designed to provoke and scare the Iranian boat, firing two warning shots.
sections: Politics, World News, Accidents