Sources familiar with Israel’s military strategy say it has adopted an asymmetrical approach where an Iranian strike on a ship may be met with a cyber-attack on its infrastructure. The clandestine war in the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean is just one front in a wider conflict being waged with drones, spies, and cyber divisions on both sides. The Iranian embassy did not respond to an emailed request for further details of the other eight.įour Israeli-linked ships, including the Mercer Street, have been struck in the same period. Three attacks, on the container ship Shahr E Kord, the alleged intelligence cargo ship Saviz, and the tanker Wisdom, have been made public. Israeli sabotage is also suspected of sinking the Kharg, Iran’s biggest navy ship, in June. Mohsen Baharvand, Iran’s ambassador to London, said last week that there have been 11 Israeli attacks on Iranian cargo vessels this year. In 2020, Iranian ships were attacked at least six times.Īnd incidents have soared since February this year, when Israel accused the tanker Emerald of carrying out an “eco terrorist attack” by deliberately and illegally spilling oil that drenched 100 miles of Israeli beaches in thick tar. In 2019, there were three reports of attacks on ships linked to either Israel or Iran, though details of the incident were scant at the time. Since then, other vessels linked to either Iran or Israel have been struck by missiles, attacked with limpet mines, or fallen victim to mysterious explosions with increasing frequency.Īnalysis by The Telegraph found that the attacks have steadily risen year-on-year since 2019, amid warnings that both countries are approaching the brink of open war. Saudi authorities said an Iranian tanker, Happiness 1, suddenly lost control of its engine and was left drifting some 70 nautical miles southwest of Jeddah. The shadow war, as its name suggests, is shrouded in mystery and has so far gone unacknowledged by Israeli and Iranian leaders.īut it appears to have begun in earnest on May 2 2019, not far from the Red Sea coast Saudi Arabia. Last week the “shadow war” turned fatal for the first time when a suspected Iranian kamikaze drone killed British father of one Adrian Underwood and the unnamed Romanian captain of the tanker Mercer Street. The assaults on oil tankers, cargo ships and other vessels have escalated sharply over the past six months and shipping industry and security experts fear an undeclared naval conflict destabilising some of the world’s busiest trade routes. At least 20 civilian ships have been attacked by mines, drones, and commandos in a rapidly spiraling “shadow war” between Iran and Israel, according to analysis by The Telegraph.
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