Britain's Top General Calls for Retaliation on Iran for Drone Strike
Voice of America
Britain's top military commander, General Nick Carter, said Wednesday that Western powers need to retaliate for a suspected Iranian drone strike on an oil tanker, which killed a British security guard and the ship's Romanian captain — otherwise Tehran will feel emboldened.
Speaking to the BBC, Carter, chief of the British Defense Staff, said if a regime of deterrence is not restored in the Gulf, there will be more attacks and a higher risk of "miscalculation" by Iran. "What we need to be doing, fundamentally, is calling out Iran for its very reckless behavior," he said. Iran has vehemently denied playing any role in the July 29 drone strike on the MV Mercer Street off the coast of Oman. The vessel is Japanese-owned but managed by London-based firm Zodiac Maritime, which in turn is owned by Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer. The British government and the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden have accused Iran of being behind the deadly drone strike with Britain's foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, labeling it "unlawful and callous."FILE - President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia attends a summit in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland, June 15, 2024. FILE - Jubaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam speaks in Kismayo, Aug. 22, 2019. FILE - Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni speaks in Garowe, Puntland state, northeastern Somalia, Jan. 25, 2024.
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