Iran Considering Plan To Cause Oil Spill In Strait Of Hormuz [Report]

[natina]

Iran Considering Plan To Cause Oil Spill In Strait Of Hormuz [Report]

Iran is reportedly considering a top-secret plan to deliberately cause a massive oil tanker spill at the entrance to the Persian Gulf as a response to crippling sanctions that have been leveled against the country by several world powers.

The plan is codenamed “Dirty Water,” and was first announced in the German news magazine Der Spiegel, reports The Independent.
The reported plan has been leaked to Western intelligence agencies and is said to have been throught up by the leader of Iran’s hardline Revolutionary Guards, General Mohammad Ali Jafari.
The plan would involve wrecking of sabotaging an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, which is the narrow seaway between Iran and Oman, which is used by over one-third of the world’s oil tankers that enter the Persian Gulf.
An oil spill from a large vessel like an oil tanker would cause an environmental disaster in one of the world’s busiest waterways. It would also force the temporary closure of the Persian Gulf to shipping — a move that would prove incredibly costly.
Western intelligence sources have said that the proposal was targeted at punishing hostile governments for placing sanctions on the regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, believing that Tehran, Iran is trying to build a nuclear weapon.
The Jerusalem Post notes that, in addition to driving up oil prices, the resulting environmental disaster of an oil spill in the Strait of Hormuz would require Western countries to start a large-scale cleanup operation with Iran, which could potentially reduce the sanctions currently leveled against the country.
The decision on whether to implement the plan reportedly lies in the hands of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, although considering the plan is now known to Western intelligence, it is not clear on whether the country will actually implement it or not.
Do you think Iran will implement a plan to create an oil spill in the Persian Gulf as a retaliation to the sanctions leveled against them?

http://www.inquisitr.com/363344/iran...hormuz-report/

[DarkSkyScareCrow]

It seems likely that the U.S response would be some similar scorched earth tactic if China had an armada of battleships and air craft carriers stationed in the Gulf of Mexico and had imposed severe international economic sanctions.

But the economy is really still hurting right now, stagnant unemployment and all, so hey what's with a little more war propaganda, as nothing "stimulates" the economy quite like a good ole fashioned war.

God Bless Imperial America.

[nina_lisa]

Do you think Iran will implement a plan to create an oil spill in the Persian Gulf as a retaliation to the sanctions leveled against them?

I am not sure, but does not Iran it self use the Strait of Hormuz to export their own oil?

On the other side with how both the European and American economy is doing, and sinking an oil tank not that difficult, what would prevent them from doing so?

[Stavros]

I am not sure, but does not Iran it self use the Strait of Hormuz to export their own oil?

On the other side with how both the European and American economy is doing, and sinking an oil tank not that difficult, what would prevent them from doing so?

A sound argument, Nina. During the Iran-Iraq war the Iraqi's launched a 'tanker war' (1984-87) which was supposed to harass Iranian shipping/oil tankers (Iraqi jets actually regularly hit 'allied' ships by mistake, which is hardly surprising) -Saddam's aim was to so intensfy the conflict that Iran would block the Straits of Hormuz and force the US to take action. The Iranians did not do it -and I don't see why they would now. The US offered protection to ships flying the US flag in the Gulf.

I suspect this is all propoganda.

[nina_lisa]

A sound argument, Nina. During the Iran-Iraq war the Iraqi's launched a 'tanker war' (1984-87) which was supposed to harass Iranian shipping/oil tankers (Iraqi jets actually regularly hit 'allied' ships by mistake, which is hardly surprising) -Saddam's aim was to so intensfy the conflict that Iran would block the Straits of Hormuz and force the US to take action. The Iranians did not do it -and I don't see why they would now. The US offered protection to ships flying the US flag in the Gulf.

On the other side can we say military Iran is stronger today with more arms, and today they might be able to do, while they couldn't earlier?

they could also sell oil via iraq then via Turkey, but Europe is not a client for Iranian oil, it is more Asia. then do they have alternative routes?

no point predicting the future, future is always different than what you think, i can find argument both way, why they would or not do it.

[Stavros]

On the other side can we say military Iran is stronger today with more arms, and today they might be able to do, while they couldn't earlier?

they could also sell oil via iraq then via Turkey, but Europe is not a client for Iranian oil, it is more Asia. then do they have alternative routes?

no point predicting the future, future is always different than what you think, i can find argument both way, why they would or not do it.

Various sanctions on Iran have undoubtedly had an effect, yet it is still the case -or ot was- that Japan continued to import Iranian oil, in spite of the European Union ban on insuring cargoes from Iran -at one time, before China's modernisation, Japan was a major customer; they reached an agreeent with the Shah of Iran in the old days which meant Iranians didn't need a visa to travel to Japan -by the 1990s there were something like 32,000 Iranians in Japan, but it has shrunk a lot since then. It is possible recent figures of 126,000 barrels+ a day are old and that the 50% drop in Japanese imports is following the EU ban. As for China, with $1bn of investments taking place in the infrastructure of Iran, it isn't bothered. A few years ago a Chinese group was working over the very first oil field in the Middle East, discovered in 1908 by what is now BP, not sure if there is anything left to get out!