The Obama administration will say anything to protect their Iranian buddies. Powerline noted the other day that the US, really, the Obama administration, had been humiliated badly. Today we get
(CNN) Â Defense Secretary Ash Carter said that a mistake in navigation was the reason U.S. sailors entered Iranian waters earlier this week.
“I think that this much is clear, there was a navigational error of some kind,” he said at a press conference on Thursday. “All the contributing factors to that we don’t know yet, and we’re still talking to those folks, and we’ll find out more … but they were clearly out of the position that they intended to be in.”
The two U.S. Navy boats seized by Iran with 10 sailors on board were within three miles of Iran’s Farsi Island when the Iranians took them, according to a U.S. defense official directly familiar with the latest information about the incident.
The boats had drifted off course, but one was also suffering engine trouble, making it impossible for the Americans to rapidly back off and return to international waters when they were approached by armed Iranian naval boats, the official said.
I bet you didn’t know that it was a friendly gesture to commandeer foreign flagged vessels, then make the sailors kneel with their hands on their heads, and force a female sailor to comply with Sharia and put a hijab on.
https://twitter.com/NoahCRothman/status/687290811898269697
I’ll repeat what I said the other day: how does this just happen to two US Navy vessels? If one was having mechanical issues, was there a call made to another US Navy vessel? Did the navigational aids for both vessels just happen to happen? Did the sailors in charge of positioning on both boats just happen to mess up? Did no one on the other US Navy vessels in the area fail to note that these vessels, surely being tracked by the bigger boats, were out of position?
One of the boats began to have its engine “run roughly” during the transit from Kuwait to Bahrain, according to the details of what the crew has said. It’s not yet clear at what point they drifted off course, or if they even understood they were off course. It’s not believed the engine trouble was the cause of going off course.
And then they apparently missed a check-in call. Again, one would think that, if there was a mechanical issue, the boat commander would place a comm to one of their superiors on a larger naval vessel. It just doesn’t pass the smell test, unless the smell is the odor of covering Team Obama’s posterior to defend Iran.
(Powerline) IBD quotes Christopher Harmer, retired operations commander for the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. Harmer told CNN there was “no reason for a small vessel to be out that far and especially without escorting ships around it,†and “the Navy has to explain why you have small ships transiting 300 miles of open ocean.â€
These weren’t some old style boats, but state of the art, highly advanced Combat Boat 90’s. There are too many questions, and not enough answers, and liberals have to admit that if this happened under a Republican president they’d be asking these same questions.
Sailors back, boat back; end of story?
Any gear such as crypto, IFF or weapon control opened, photographed or removed?
Are we really all that stupid as to believe one word from this administration?
Farsi Island is 60 miles off shore of Saudi Arabia. Happening just before the SOTU? Released in less than 24 hours. Kerry jumps on this in a big time hurry.
After the release the Iranians say, “This incident in the Persian Gulf, which probably will not be the American forces’ last mistake in the region, should be a lesson to troublemakers in the U.S. Congress,” Major General Hassan Firouzabadi, head of Iran’s armed forces.
I guess its a silly question but is this administration working with the Iranian government? This is a big deal with the Nuclear agreement.
From what I can find, bart, Iran never signed the so-called Nuclear deal.
Teach, “These weren’t some old style boats, but state of the art, highly advanced Combat Boat 90’s” Right, and they surrendered to what look like small scale fishing boats.
These boats are powered by 2 engines. Is would be reasonable to assume a boat could continue navigation under the power of only 1 engine. The whole event doesn’t pass the smell test.
Teach
Please look at a map of that area and then try and explain what happened
The US Navy was up to something and if you want to blame Obama for it well go ahead but
Great claims require great proof
If you look at a map and plot a course from Kuwait to Bahrain you would have to go off course by 50 to 100 miles to go into Iran
waters
Also of course one boat could have towed the other if it was necessary
My guess is that they intentionally went close to evade drop on their radar and also to see what the response from the Iranians would be
But they got to close and then had a problem
But
Look at the map first and one with a distance scale
ALWAYS CHECK PRIMARY SOURCES
Sorry
Should have said
But my guess is that they got to close on purpose to activate Iranian coastal radar
This of course would show that the USA. (Obama US Navy) was constantly testing the Irainians
Does anyone want or expect a full and truthful answer from what was most probably be an intelligence gathering effort that went wrong?
If they DID drift 1.5 miles into Iraian waters
WHST THE HELL WERE THEY DOING SO FREAKIN CLOSE
Why didn’t anyone bother to look at a map ??????
What is your proof that this was an intelligence gathering operation?
You made the statement earlier that “great claims require great proof.” Where is your proof of your assertion?
You also said earlier that people should look at a map. You should take your own advice.
The boats were seized around Farsi Island which Iran claims as it’s territory. Iran also claims a 12 miles of territorial water instead of the international law of 3 miles. So even if the US boats were in what Iran claims to be their waters, they were still 7.5 miles into international waters.
There is something fishy going on here. The Administration’s story has changed over time which is a red flag. It makes no sense even if one of the boats lost propulsion, Iran has a legal duty to offer assistance as a disabled vessel. Maritime law does not allow for the boarding of a disabled vessel unless the disabled vessel requests it.
Once again, where is the GPS systems from BOTH boats? Oh that’s right….. the Iranians took them. So there is no way to verify the story that the boats were inside Iranian waters.
So who has a stake in this? Iran has a stake to try and look good to their people and show how they can best America. The Administration has a stake because they want to continue to trumpet the agreement as how Obama brought Iran into the peaceful fold.
Please tell us john, why should we, the American people trust any of the players in this incident?