An Iranian naval flotilla briefly seized two American unmanned research military vessels in the Red Sea and released them shortly thereafter, Iranian state media reported.
"The Iranian navy destroyer Jamaran encountered several American unmanned research naval vessels on the international sea route while carrying out a counter-terrorism mission in the Red Sea," state TV said, adding that the flotilla, "after twice warning a American destroyer, seized the two drone ships to prevent possible accidents ".
"After securing the passage of international shipping, the flotilla released the two ships in a safe area," the state broadcaster continued.
The US Navy said its ships were taking photos of their surroundings and had been in the vicinity of the Southern Red Sea for more than 200 days.
"At around 2:00 pm (local time) on September 1, the US 5th Fleet detected the Iranian ship approaching both unmanned vessels and removed them from the water," the US Navy said in a note.
Two destroyers operating nearby, the USS Nitze and the USS Delbert D. Black, "remained on the scene communicating with the Iranian warship to handle the situation," he added.
The ships of the United States Navy were released around 8:00 the next day.
On Tuesday, the Pentagon informed, an Iranian ship hijacked another US military drone ship in the Gulf, released after a US Navy patrol boat and helicopter were deployed on the scene.
