A man who apparently regularly broadcasts "insults" and "vile epithets" may have come close to touching off a war. An update on this story. "Heckler behind U.S.-Iran incident? Sailors say person often heard in region might have inflamed events," from AP (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist):
CAIRO, Egypt - A threatening radio message at the end of a video showing Iranian patrol boats swarming near U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf may have come from a prankster rather than from the Iranian vessels, the Navy Times newspaper has reported.A video and audio of the Jan. 6 incident in the Strait of Hormuz featured a man in accented English saying "I am coming to you. ... You will explode after ... minutes."
Cmdr. Lydia Robertson, spokeswoman for the Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, said the Navy was still trying to determine the source of the transmission but believed it was related to the Iranian actions.
"The Iranian boats were coming close to the ships, making aggressive maneuvers and objects were being dropped into the water," she told The Associated Press.
However, the Navy Times, a weekly newspaper published by the Gannett company, quoted several veteran sailors as speculating the transmission could have come from a heckler widely known among sailors in the region by the ethnically insulting term "the Filipino Monkey."
The newspaper, which serves the Navy community, said U.S. sailors in the Persian Gulf have heard the prankster — possibly more than one person — transmitting "insults and jabbering vile epithets" on unencrypted frequencies.
"Navy women — a helicopter pilot hailing a tanker, for example — who are overheard on the radio are said to suffer particularly degrading treatment," the newspaper said Sunday. "Several Navy ship drivers interviewed by Navy Times raised the possibility that the heckler, or an imitator, was indeed featured in that video."
U.S. Navy officials at Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain could not immediately be reached for comment. However, Navy officials have said they were unsure where the transmission came from.
The threat, however, ratcheted up tensions in the incident, which began when Iranian patrol boats swarmed around three U.S. Navy vessels near Iranian waters in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has denied that its boats threatened the U.S. vessels and accused Washington of fabricating video and audio it released. Iran's government has released its own video, which appeared to be shot from a small boat bobbing at least yards from the American warships.
The Navy Times quoted Rick Hoffman, a retired captain, as saying a renegade talker repeatedly harassed ships in the Gulf in the late 1980s.
"For 25 years there's been this mythical guy out there who, hour after hour, shouts obscenities and threats," he said. "He could be tied up pierside somewhere or he could be on the bridge of a merchant ship," Hoffman said.
The Iranians could have recorded this guy and used his voice.
Who knows?
Consider the fact that the Pentagon has an aid to the DepDefSec whose name is Islam (Ret. USN) and prefers talking to shooting according to his own statement in the USDefensnews.
Maybe the Jefferson Airplane can rewrite Anchors Aweigh so that it is more peace-like.
If the radio messages were a prank, so what?
We all saw
Are they suggesting the images of enemy patrol boats 'swarming' US warships were a mirage too?
If it's a prank, why am I not laughing?
Prank or not, this kind of thing could be the trigger to a regional war if the US actually takes action.
Iran's behaviour has been provocative for a long time now and the US has been very restrained in taking any action against them. I think all the diplomacy Bush is doing is a good thing, but at some point you have to back your words and do something about it if these things keep going on.
We know for a fact they've killed Americans in Iraq so the fact that we're still holding back is a shock to me and for any parent of a deceased soldier who was killed by Iranians in Iraq
Actions speak louder than words. Were the patrol boats that swarmed the ships just having fun? Who's to say the "heckler" heard over the radio wasn't also an Iranian agent?
Plausible deniability. War is deceit.
If you listen to the original audio, the U.S. seaman who is talking sounds like he is talking over a radio (thin, crackly). The Iranian voice who threatens to blow up something sounds very clear and full, with no background noise. It sounded odd to me. If he's on a boat on full throttle, you'd think there'd be some background noise, or that his voice would be shaking from the vibrations.
But a prank? How would the prankster know the exact moment to start talking on the radio, at the exact moment the Iranian ships are swarming around the U.S. ship? If he coordinated ahead of time with the Iranians, then what difference does it make whose voice is making the threat?
First the Iranians said this was a completely normal incident, now the story is that it was a harmless prank. I still think the U.S. Navy should have destroyed their boats in mid-swarm, and let the Iranians try to find the merry prankster amongst the flotsam and jetsam.
The recorder had to be in sight of the action to know when to make his threat. Without the mysterious voice this is still a serious incident. Any such movements from unauthorized boats/ships should be considered hostile actions and guns manned, and used, if they even look like they are going to strike. In this case paranoia is a good thing...
No matter what the actual facts are, the great majority of people in dar al islam will simply believe that this is an American fabrication. The truth is irrelevant to muslims. It's all about the appearance of being in the right, not actually being in the right.
I agree with justamomof4. The prankster voice on the radio is irrelevant to the incident. The heart of the matter was the too-close and aggressive approach by the Iranian boats. They should have been summarily blown out of the water. My armchair analysis is that the military put our ships and sailors unnecessarily at risk by failing to destroy the Iranian ships.
Arguing over a voice on the radio is just another tactic to avoid reality. Rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic, as it were.
Just a prank? Sinking all the Iranian boats would have been even funnier. The very idea leaves me in stitches.
Whatever we do will be construed by some as wrong, so we may as well be hung for a hog as for a ham
OK. Tell the Iranians they have had their free pass. And if there are more provocations, next time we sink anything that looks threatening.
This prankster has some timing. Iranians turn tail just as he jabbers away.
A Country full of loose Cannons.
Why were our Ships not escorted by Patrol Boats when transiting such confined water ways bordering Hostile Territory?
Capitol ships are not designed for use against what is in effect a Human guided Torpedo boat. There is need for a screening force capable of disrupting this tactic.
A modern day convoy system designed for this area. Counter Iranian efforts.
I question the wisdom to send 3 such Capitol Ships through the Straight without Escort. Knowing full well the Iranians do these things.
How many wars does the Navy have to fight before it remembers the advantages of Convoys on it's own?
Where's PT 109 when you need it? Only upgraded with todays toys.
Someone needs to get on the ball.
OK. Tell the Iranians they have had their free pass. And if there are more provocations, next time we sink anything that looks threatening.
Jay,
Agreed, but this should have been SOP since the Cole was bombed. If little boats ignore warnings they should get zapped. But we won't do it. We're too afraid of the repercussions. Can't look like some big goliath stepping on the little guy who's out taking a ride (barf!) with his family.
The US Navy is NOT going to fire the first shot.
Iran knows that there is going to be new leaders in Washington very soon.
Militarists will just have to settle for another disappointment.
Iran has been given a pass on its nuclear program in exchange for its reduction in assistance to the Iraqi Shia.
I see in the 5th paragraph that the Navy Times is published by the Gannett Company. If the Navy Times version of Gannett and their product is in keeping with what we have in this state, on a good day it would be of sufficient quality to substitute for toilet paper. Don't put to much faith in this story unless you see it confirmed elsewhere.
This "transmission from shore" assertion seems very questionable to me.
I've seen the tape a couple of times--the line "I am coming to you. ... You will explode after ... minutes" not only coordinates exactly with the approach of the boats, but also comes in direct response to a query from the American ship.
That this is the act of some "prankster" on shore makes no sense. This would also mean that while the Iranian ship sent out boats to swarm the American ship, that the captain and crew did not themselves respond to American radio contact in any way. Very odd.
Especially after the incident with the bombing of the USS Cole, this is very disturbing. And yet, if the American ship had fired on the swarming Iranian boats, it is the Americans who would have been condemned.
Like I posted a couple of days ago. Two can play this game. We know were these little boats came from, or at least we can or should be able to find out. I say, show up one night a blow them out of the water. Next day show a surprised look on our face. Tell everyone we don't know what they are talking about. To bad, hope no one was hurt? Do you want us to investigate and see if a terrorist did it?
Don't spread this around, but I would also communicate a few days or weeks later, after the media have forgotten about it, and through quite channels, reminding them if they pull anything else stupid, we can bloody their nose anytime.
Diplomacy, in many ways is like school playground with a bunch of eight or ten year olds. We are the big target but we can be sneaky as well. They are looking for attention and respect.
Isn't it sad, but that is the only thing these low life understand, don't hold it against them, just remember were they are coming from.
Why is the idea of a shore transmission so odd? Some goofball somewhere in the Gulf region listens to the US warning, then fires off that stupid comment. You don't have to read anything more into it than that. The guy certainly didn't need to be within sight of the incident.
Anyhow, this is just obscuring the real issue and giving the nuts ammo to claim that Chimpy McHitler concocted the whole thing. This isn't about dumb threats; it's about Iranian boats buzzing US vessels. And none of the US ships responding. The Iranian ships should have been sunk. Gutless responses like this just tells the Iranians that they can get awfully close without drawing even a warning shot.
Not sure that's a good message to be sending.
Our story about the “Filipino Monkey.” allows the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) or Pasdaran to save face.
We've made the point that we'll handle the next effort a little less gently, I just hope it wasn't a hollow threat.
We don't need another USS Cole, which is exactly what this looked like becoming.
According to the recent Pew Research Center's poll of American Muslims, 75% of Muslims do not believe that the attacks on 9-11 were planned and carried out by fellow Muslims.
Why do we even TRY to reason with these people?
""Navy women — a helicopter pilot hailing a tanker, for example — who are overheard on the radio are said to suffer particularly degrading treatment,"
.....it might interest the Muslims to know that there are fighter pilots in attack aircraft belonging to the US Navy who are women....one day, maybe, the Muslims will discover just how well these women can fly.....
...I wonder how a Muslim would feel, knowing he died at the hands of a woman....
....a prank?...kinda like encountering a police officer in a dark alley...you pull a toy gun...talk rudely...and then make a sudden move towards the police officer while pointing the gun...
.....your dying words..."Hey Bro...it was just a prank"....
so a prankster hundreds of miles away knew exactly when iranian patrol boats were within striking distance of US ships? them some damn good binoculars he got!
enough of the BS...it was definitely one of the iranian seamem that put forward the threats. and hows that bbc reporter saying that the voice of the threat was different to the voice of the seaman that contacted the US ships on camera? simply proof that the CB changed hands and someone else gave the threats.