Massive anti-mine naval exercise underway in Gulf
Naval forces from more than 30 countries were on Monday engaged in a massive
minesweeping exercise in the Gulf, US officials said, amid Iranian threats to
block the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The US-led International Mine Countermeasures Exercise (IMCMEX),
the first of its kind in the Middle East, comes amid heightened tensions between
Israel and Iran over the Islamic republic's controversial nuclear programme.
The exercise kicked off on Sunday, the same day as the head of Iran's
Revolutionary Guards warned of retaliation against the Strait of Hormuz, Israel
and nearby US bases if his country is attacked and as Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Tehran is "90 percent" toward having a nuclear
bomb.
