Iran's Revolutionary Guard Reveals ‘Tough Days’ in 'Ship War’

Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) commander Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami during a meeting in Tehran with President Masoud Pezeshkian and commanders of the Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters. (Mehr news agency)
Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) commander Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami during a meeting in Tehran with President Masoud Pezeshkian and commanders of the Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters. (Mehr news agency)
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Iran's Revolutionary Guard Reveals ‘Tough Days’ in 'Ship War’

Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) commander Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami during a meeting in Tehran with President Masoud Pezeshkian and commanders of the Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters. (Mehr news agency)
Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) commander Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami during a meeting in Tehran with President Masoud Pezeshkian and commanders of the Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters. (Mehr news agency)

After years of an ongoing shadow war between Iran and Israel, a top Iranian military commander revealed that his country had, some time ago, hit 12 Israeli vessels north of the Indian Ocean and elsewhere in response to Israel’s attacks on 14 Iranian ships.

Hossein Salami, chief commander of Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), made the remarks on Saturday during a meeting in the capital Tehran between President Masoud Pezeshkian and commanders of the Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters, an Iranian firm controlled by the IRGC.

For the last 20 years, Iran and Israel have not officially confirmed any mutual attacks in their regional waters, with the first known incident occurring in January 2002.

Both countries have managed to keep tensions in check, although they spiked between 2019 and 2024.

Salami did not specify exact dates for the so-called “ship war”, but said it happened during Donald Trump’s presidency and the coronavirus pandemic, roughly between 2017 and 2021.

During this time, Israel and the US targeted Iranian ships to limit Iran’s military activities and disrupt oil shipments amid sanctions.

According to the Mehr government news agency, the top official referred to this period as “challenging,” noting that the IRGC faced tough conditions with Trump in office, economic sanctions, and the coronavirus pandemic.

“Our enemy placed us at the crossroads of sanctions, the coronavirus pandemic, Trump (who was no less harmful than the coronavirus), the threat of military operations, and pressure for political isolation,” Salami said.

“Initially, we did not realize who or which country was targeting the ships, but we eventually found out that it was Israel that had done it in a secretive and vague manner,” revealed Salami.

“North of the Indian Ocean and in different places, we hit 12 Israeli ships. After hitting the fifth vessel, they raised their hands in surrender and said they would cease the war between the ships,” he said.

Salami claimed that Iran has now secured all maritime routes previously targeted by enemies, ensuring safe passage for ships.

He didn’t specify whether the IRGC or the Houthi militias in Yemen were behind attacks on Israeli vessels.

After the breakout of the Hamas-Israel war in 2023, attacks on ships increased, with the Iran-backed Houthis, initially targeting Israeli-linked vessels, now also attacking ships tied to the US and the UK.



Wars Top Global Risk as Davos Elite Gathers in Shadow of Fragmented World

A view of a logo during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a logo during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, 2024. (Reuters)
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Wars Top Global Risk as Davos Elite Gathers in Shadow of Fragmented World

A view of a logo during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a logo during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, 2024. (Reuters)

Armed conflict is the top risk in 2025, a World Economic Forum (WEF) survey released on Wednesday showed, a reminder of the deepening global fragmentation as government and business leaders attend an annual gathering in Davos next week.

Nearly one in four of the more than 900 experts surveyed across academia, business and policymaking ranked conflict, including wars and terrorism, as the most severe risk to economic growth for the year ahead.

Extreme weather, the no. 1 concern in 2024, was the second-ranked danger.

"In a world marked by deepening divides and cascading risks, global leaders have a choice: to foster collaboration and resilience, or face compounding instability," WEF Managing Director Mirek Dusek said in a statement accompanying the report.

"The stakes have never been higher."

The WEF gets underway on Jan. 20 and Donald Trump, who will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States the same day and has promised to end the war in Ukraine, will address the meeting virtually on Jan. 23. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will attend the meeting and give a speech on Jan. 21, according to the WEF organizers.

Among other global leaders due to attend the meeting are European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and China's Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang.

Syria, the "terrible humanitarian situation in Gaza" and the potential escalation of the conflict in the Middle East will be a focus at the gathering, according to WEF President and CEO Borge Brende.

Negotiators were hammering out the final details of a potential ceasefire in Gaza on Wednesday, following marathon talks in Qatar.

The threat of misinformation and disinformation was ranked as the most severe global risk over the next two years, according to the survey, the same ranking as in 2024.

Over a 10-year horizon environmental threats dominated experts' risk concerns, the survey showed. Extreme weather was the top longer-term global risk, followed by biodiversity loss, critical change to earth's systems and a shortage of natural resources.

Global temperatures last year exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius (34.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial era for the first time, bringing the world closer to breaching the pledge governments made under the 2015 Paris climate agreement.

A global risk is defined by the survey as a condition that would negatively affect a significant proportion of global GDP, population or natural resources. Experts were surveyed in September and October.

The majority of respondents, 64%, expect a multipolar, fragmented global order to persist.