Iran welcomes US rescue of its 13 sailors from pirates

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman has welcomed the U.S. Navy’s rescue of 13 Iranian fishermen held by pirates.

Ramin Mehmanparast was quoted by state TV’s Al-Alam Arabic channel as saying the rescue was a “humanitarian” gesture by the American warship and Iran welcomes that.

But the hard-line Fars news agency called the rescue operation a Hollywood dramatization of a routine incident.

U.S. officials announced Friday that the fishermen had been rescued by a U.S. Navy destroyer the day before, more than 40 days after their boat was commandeered by suspected Somali pirates in the northern Arabian Sea.

AP