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Added on the 03/05/2023 20:57:49 - Copyright : AFPTV - First images
The United States demands that Iran immediately release a ship seized off Oman's coast in avowed retaliation for US actions. "The Iranian government must immediately release the ship and its crew. This unlawful seizure of a commercial vessel is just the latest behavior by Iran or enabled by Iran aimed at disrupting international commerce," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel tells reporters. SOUNDBITE
The British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero docks in Dubai after sailing from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas where it was held for more than two months, according to pool reports and a tracking website. IMAGES
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has asked China's foreign minister and other counterparts to use their influence to dissuade Iran from striking Israel, the State Department says. Blinken spoke by telephone to his Chinese, Turkish, Saudi and European counterparts "to make clear that escalation is not in anyone's interest and that countries should urge Iran not to escalate," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE
The United States condemns recent Iranian strikes in Pakistan, Iraq and Syria, which Tehran has claimed were carried out against "anti-Iranian terrorist groups." "We do condemn those strikes. We've seen Iran violate the sovereign borders of three of its neighbors in just the past couple of days," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE
The United States warns against further escalation in the Middle East after a suspected Israeli attack on a Hamas leader in Lebanon and deadly blasts in Iran. "It is in no one's interest -- not in the interest of any country in the region, not in the interest of any country in the world -- to see this conflict. escalated any further than it already is," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE