US diplomats warned Saturday that commercial airliners flying over the wider Persian Gulf faced a risk of being “misidentified” amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran.
The warning relayed by U.S. Diplomatic posts from theFederal Aviation Administration underlined the risks the current tensions poseto a region crucial to global air travel. It also came as Lloyd’s of Londonwarned of increasing risks to maritime shipping in the region.
Concerns about a possible conflict have flared since theWhite House ordered warships and bombers to the region to counter an alleged,unexplained threat from Iran that has seen America order nonessentialdiplomatic staff out of Iraq. President Donald Trump since has sought to softenhis tone.
Meanwhile, authorities allege that a sabotage operationtargeted four oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, andIran-aligned rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for a drone attack on acrucial Saudi oil pipeline.
Saudi Arabia directly blamed Iran for the drone assault, anda local newspaper linked to the Al Saud royal family called on Thursday forAmerica to launch “surgical strikes” on Tehran.
This all takes root in Trump’s decision last year towithdraw the US from the 2015 nuclear accord between Iran and world powers andimpose wide-reaching sanctions.
Iran just announcedit would begin backing away from terms of the deal, setting a 60-day deadlinefor Europe to come up with new terms or it would begin enriching uranium closerto weapons-grade levels. Tehran long has insisted it does not seek nuclearweapons, though the West fears its program could allow it to build atomicbombs.
The order relayed Saturday by U.S. Diplomats in Kuwait andthe UAE came from an FAA Notice to Airmen published late Thursday in the US.
It said that allcommercial aircraft flying over the waters of Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Omanneeded to be aware of “heightened military activities and increased politicaltension.” Thispresents “an increasing inadvertent risk to U.S. Civil aviation operations dueto the potential for miscalculation or misidentification,” the warning said. Italso said aircraft could experience interference with its navigation instrumentsand communications jamming “with little to no warning.”