'Iran will bear the consequences': Israel vows retaliation after vessel seized by commandos
Iran's state-run IRNA said a special forces unit of the Guard's navy carried out the attack on the vessel on Saturday
Commandos from Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard rappelled down from a helicopter onto an Israeli-affiliated container ship, the latest in a series of attacks between the two countries.
The Middle East had braced for potential Iranian retaliation over a suspected Israeli strike earlier this month on an Iranian consular building in Syria that killed 12 people, including one of the country's senior generals.
Iran's state-run IRNA said a special forces unit of the Guard's navy carried out the attack on the vessel on Saturday near the Strait of Hormuz.
Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said: "Iran will bear consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further. "Israel is on high alert. We have increased our readiness to protect Israel from further Iranian aggression. "We are also prepared to respond."
Iranian media identified as the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, a container ship associated with London-based Zodiac Maritime.
Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group.
In the video showing the commandos seizing the boat, a crew member on-board can be heard saying: “Don’t come out.” He then tells his colleagues to go to the ship’s bridge as more commandos come down on the deck. One commando can be seen kneeling above the others to provide them potential cover fire.
The UK's Maritime Trade Operations described the vessel as being “seized by regional authorities” in the Gulf of Oman off the Emirati port city of Fujairah, without elaborating.
Since 2019, Iran has engaged in a series of ship seizures and attacks on vessels have been attributed to it amid ongoing tensions with the West over its rapidly advancing nuclear program.
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