Iranian Navy will counter all threats with martyrdom-seeking spirit: admiral

03 December 2011 | 04:00 Code : 18508 Latest Headlines

Mehr News - The commander of the Iranian Navy has said that the courageous sailors of the Iranian Navy will counter every threat with the slogan “Our way is the way of Imam Hussein (AS)” and by relying on their martyrdom-seeking spirit.

 

Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari made the remarks at Friday prayers in Tehran on December 2.

 

The sailors of the Iranian Navy are fully prepared to defend the maritime borders of the country, under the orders of their commander in chief, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, he added.

 

Sayyari commemorated the mourning days for Imam Hussein (AS) and Iran’s Navy Day, which occurred on November 28 this year, saying Navy Day marks the anniversary of the Iranian Navy’s victory in the Morvarid (Pearl) Naval Operation, which took place on Azar 7, 1359 (November 27, 1980) in the strategic northern Persian Gulf region during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.

 

The Morvarid operation not only resulted in a military triumph but it was followed by political and economic achievements, since today the Navy defends the economic interests of the country on the high seas, he added.

 

He described the extraction of the oceans’ latent energy, the enormous food supplies of the seas, the transmission of culture to regional and extra-regional countries through extensive maritime transportation, increased trade through shipping, and the provision of security for sea routes as essential for the country.

 

In response to the Supreme Leader’s orders, the Iranian Navy has transformed itself from a coastal navy into an international waters navy, he noted.

 

Elsewhere in his remarks, Sayyari stated that the Iranian Navy’s 16th Fleet, which includes the Jamaran destroyer and the Bandar Abbas gunboat, set sail for the northern Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden about 55 days ago.

 

Iranian warships have escorted 1300 merchant ships and oil tankers in the northern Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden so far, have been the victors in over 100 battles with pirate ships, and have foiled many attempts to hijack ships, he added.