According to Press TV, Iranian authorities have deployed Sahand - a naval fleet area equipped with long-range cruise missiles to the Gulf of Aden to escort the country's ships in the area.
The warships deployed by Iran are described as the most advanced fleet area, along with a logistics ship and a Kharg helicopter carrier.
Former Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, Iran's military chief of staff, said that the Sahand axis fleet is the 63rd Iranian naval group to be deployed to operate at sea. The group will escort Iranian ships in the Oman Sea and the Persian Gulf.
The Sahand axis area joined the southern Iranian naval fleet in December last year. This is the third Mowj-class destroy ship built by Iran after the Jamaran and Damavand ships. Unlike previous ship axes, Sahand has been increased in size and performance, making it twice as strong in attack and defense.
This ship's axis is equipped with advanced trawlers, many types of anti-ship and anti-aircraft weapons, surface-to-air and surface-to-air missiles, precision defense mechanisms, underground anti-ship systems, etc.
The information comes a day after the Iranian naval commander announced his readiness to escort the Adrian Darya oil tanker (formerly the grace 1) - which was released by Gibraltar authorities in August after a month of being detained despite the US's desire to re- seize the ship.
Iran's grace 1 tankers were arrested by the Gibraltar government in early July on charges of transporting oil to Syria - a violation of EU sanctions against Syria. After the investigation, British overseas territory authorities released the oil tanker despite Washington's efforts to stop it by issuing a re-arrest warrant.
On August 24, ship tracking site MarineTraffic.com said that the Iranian crude ship Adrian Darya was transporting 2.1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil worth about 130 million USD moving south of Sicily and updated its next destination to Mersin Port, Turkey.
According to this page, the Iranian oil tanker will arrive at Mersin on August 31. Mersin may not be the final destination for oil ships. Mersin Port is about 200km from a refinery in Baniyas, Syria.
