Iran's navy steps up presence in Red Sea

Iran’s navy has recently increased its presence in the Red Sea, posing a threat to international shipping and regional stability. Military sources confirmed that Iran is methodically basing itself in the Red Sea, with its ships patrolling the southern region.

Israel’s defense minister said Tuesday that Iran is expanding its aggressive operations in the region in general, and in the naval arena in particular.

Last month saw the most significant Iranian military presence in the area in the past decade, posing a direct threat to international trade, energy supply, and global economy, sources said.

According to sources, recent satellite images showed four Iranian military ships in the Red Sea, adding that the Islamic Republic has been “unusually” patrolling the region with its military ships.

The four military ships in the Red Sea were a Hengam-class landing ship, two Bandar Abbas-class replenishment ships, which are auxiliary fleet supply vessels and a Mowj-class light frigate.

The United States Naval Institute said last week that satellite imagery shows Iran is constructing a new stealth missile boat on the island of Qeshm in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. The unidentified catamaran is similar to another new multi-hulled missile watercraft, a Shahid Soleimani-class missile corvette, but is noticeably smaller.

Last year, an Iranian spy ship was towed away from the Bab al-Mandab at the mouth of the Red Sea after it was damaged in an apparent attack. The ship was later replaced with another suspected Iranian spy ship. The US Navy’s Fifth Fleet established two new international task forces over the past year to patrol the Red Sea for illicit smuggling.

The US announced Task Force 153 as the latest addition to the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) coalition in April to enable more efficient patrolling extending to the seas off the Yemen-Oman border in the Gulf of Aden. The US also stood up Task Force 59, a separate US-led unit focused on deploying and testing unmanned seafaring drones in the Red Sea to gather data.

The US Navy on Tuesday announced a program offering up to $100,000 in cash transfers to individuals who report on illicit smuggling in Middle Eastern waters. The US Fifth Fleet aims to expand its unmanned presence to 100 sea drones in the Red Sea by summer 2023, and expects additional countries to join Task Force 59