Footage: Iranian Navy aircraft monitor extra-regional warships in Persian Gulf

The footage, broadcast by the IRIB on Thursday, showed a Navy jet flying over a warship, as part of what the reporter described as the routine maritime and aerial patrols aimed at identifying extra-regional ships and monitoring their movements off the country’s southern coast.

Tensions have been running high between Iran and the US over the latter’s seizure of an oil tanker carrying Iranian crude in April.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that US prosecutors are trying to auction 800,000 barrels of the seized Iranian oil, which is sitting in a Greek tanker off the coast of Texas.

Reacting to the attempt, Commander of the Navy of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Brigadier General Alireza Tangsiri warned companies of retaliation should they buy stolen Iranian oil.

“We hereby declare that we would hold any oil company seeking to unload our crude from the vessel responsible and we also hold America responsible,” said the commander.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, American firms are reluctant to buy the Iranian cargo, as they fear potential reprisals from Iran.