Iranian Missile Drill Kills 19 Sailors in Friendly Fire

In the Gulf of Oman, 19 missiles were killed in a missile drill by the Iranian Navy. Fifteen other passengers were injured.

The accident happened just off the coast of the Iranian port of Jask on Sunday evening. A missile that was fired from the Jamaran ship did not hit the intended target but hit the Konarak, another ship that was carrying.

According to social media reports, the Konarak sank on that. The Iranian Navy reports 19 fatalities and at least 15 injuries.

Research has yet to show exactly how the accident could have happened. Perhaps the Konarak was too close to the floating target and was hit by a new type of missile.

It is another blot on the face of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the elite corps of the national army. In January, the Revolutionary Guard shot another Ukrainian passenger plane from the air. Besides, all 176 occupants were killed.

The navy did not have a very good reputation internationally. For example, the US claims that the Revolutionary Guard is blocking shipping in the region around Iran from international freight traffic.

Six U.S. naval vessels have recently been harassed by patrol boats. The confrontations violate international regulations.

Iran was also discredited in the Persian Gulf last year when it boarded several foreign oil tankers. That was a retaliation for an Iranian oil tanker that was chained by the British Navy near Gibraltar for allegedly violating European sanctions against the Syrian regime.