US backs down over Gulf claims

The Pentagon has admitted that the footage of Iranian Revolutionary Guard speedboats 'buzzing' US Navy warships on January 6 may have been compromised. They have confirmed that the voice heard threatening that "I am coming at you - you will explode in a couple of minutes" could have come from a source other than the speedboats.

The incident was first brought up by the White House on January 7. Washington claimed then that the US craft had been on the verge of firing on the Revolutionary Guard boats until the Iranians abruptly turned away. A video which appeared to back their claims up was released on January 8, on which the voice, ostensibly that of an Iranian, threatened the US Navy officers over the radio.

The Iranians had originally downplayed the incident, claiming through their Foreign Ministry that it was a case of mistaken identity. However, they were angered by the release of the US video, which they immediately labelled as fake, and released their own footage.

In the Iranian version, the communications between the two sides are remarkably innocuous, with no warnings of explosions. Tehran claims that the US is using the incident to justify their presence in the Gulf and to provoke a crisis there.