Posted on 03/30/2006 2:01:42 PM PST by Calpernia
A ferry carrying up to 150 people has sank off the coast of Bahrain, according to officials and an official news agency report.
The Bahraini Interior Minister said 40 bodies have been recovered so far. Many were believed to be missing.
The vessel was believed to have taken out the tourists for a short tour of the Gulf, officials said.
The official news agency BNA said 60 passengers had been rescued and taken to hospitals after the ferry sank on Thursday night.
A US Navy spokesman said divers and small Navy vessels were helping in the rescue operations.
The spokesman, Commander Jeff Breslau of the US 5th fleet in Bahrain, had no other details, but regional television stations reported scores of ambulances and police vehicles heading to Bahrain's Muharraq port.
They did not identify the ship but said there were casualties.
An al-Arabiya correspondent in Bahrain said the stricken vessel was likely to be a local ferry sailing around nearby Bahraini Gulf islands.
Xinhua: Iran To Launch Massive Military Maneuver in Gulf "Iran To Launch Massive Military Maneuver in Gulf" --
Xinhua headline
Xinhua
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Tehran, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran is to launch a massive military maneuver in the Gulf as of Friday, the official IRNA news agency reported on Wednesday.
Admiral Morteza Saffari, Naval Force Commander of Iran's elite militia - the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), was quoted as saying that the naval and ground forces of the IRGC, the Armed Forces and the Disciplinary Forces (police) would participate in the war game.
The maneuver will last till April 6 near the northern coasts of the Gulf, and over 17,000 soldiers and 1,500 naval vessels of various types and sizes will join the operation, Saffari announced.
"The entire armed forces are fully ready to defend the territorial integrity of the motherland, which will be displayed during the war game," Saffari added.
Iran's announcement of staging the large-scale military maneuver came as members, especially the five permanent members, of the UN Security Council were discussing future measures over the country's disputed nuclear issue.
The United States, Britain and France are pushing for tough measures at the Security Council against Iran, but the move was opposed by Russia and China, which are afraid that harsh means would run counterproductive. Accusing Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons, the U.S. and Israel have threatened to launch preemptive attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities.
In response, Tehran says that it will counterattack any invasions and is capable of defending the Islamic Republic.
(Description of Source: Beijing Xinhua in English -- China's official news service for English-language audiences (New China News Agency))
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For more translations and news on terrorism, visit
http://www.lauramansfield.com
ping
Hummmmmmm. Very, Very Interesting.
News report said many of the missing are British.
Prayers up.
Or a Philippine bus crash.
or a Ferry sinking in Bangladesh.
Michael Jackson wasn't in that ferry, was he ?
Was he scheduled to be?
Oh geez. Not only are there not a lot of swimmers in that region of the world, the snakes in the AG are nasty. Scarey!
Prayers for the lost and their families, and for the Sailors assisting the effort.
Iran To Launch 'Massive' Naval 'Holy Prophet' Exercise 31 Mar
IRNA (Internet Version-WWW)
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Tehran, March 29, IRNA -- Iran is to launch a massive joint naval wargame titled "Holy Prophet (PBUH)", beginning on March 31 with shooting of a Shahab II Missile into the air with the message of "Peace and Friendship" for the regional countries, Persian Gulf, and Sea of Oman littoral states.
Commander of the Islamic Republic Guard Corps Naval Force Admiral Morteza Saffari announced the news at a press conference here on Wednesday, adding, "The IRGC Naval Force, the IRI naval and Army forces, volunteer Forces and the IRI Disciplinary Forces will participate in the military maneuver.
The wargame would begin with the password "Muhammad the Messenger of Allah," according to the IRGC Naval Force Commander and last till April 6 in the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf up to 40 kilometers to the south, to Iran's border port city of Chabahar in the region.
Over seventeen thousand of Iran's armed forces and Basij mobilization forces, would take part in the naval wargame in which ,500 large and small naval vessels of various types would participate.
The IRGC official added, "The Command Headquarters of the wargame would be the IRGC Noah Naval Barracks, while five other army, Air Force and navy bases in three provinces would back up the massive operation."
Admiral Saffari announced the entire armed forces' of the country's full readiness to defend the territorial integrity of the motherland.
He added, "The latest local achievements of the country in defense industries, implementation of the experiences of the country's armed forces in planning and launching massive military operations in practice, evaluation of the conduct of our commanders, and providing a real atmosphere for our mobilization forces to display their defense apabilities are among the top objectives of the maneuver." The four-phased naval wargame is meanwhile planned to display the Islamic system's defensive capabilities.
Iranian made drones would be flied to collect information from the virtual enemy's camp, sea-to-air missiles capable of pursuing moving objects, helicopters capable of shooting air-to-sea, and air-to-land missiles, rapid reaction boats, Iranian made intelligent mines with multi-sensors, various naval rocket mine launchers, huge Iranian made naval rockets and up-to-date telecommunication facilities would be among the sea of equipment to be facilitated during the wargame.
(Description of Source: Tehran IRNA (Internet Version-WWW) in English -- official state-run news agency)
our military would be going ape-$h!t if the Iranian Navy was that close to our bases in Bahrain and Qatar.
This boat wasn't that far offshore. They aren't related, at least militarily.
Now terrorism could be another matter, but it won't be related to their military exercises.
44 Bodies Recovered After Ferry With Up to 150 People Aboard Sinks Off Coast of Bahrain
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1787583&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312
Not good. I've heard that there are lots of sharks in those waters.
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