Iran Urges UN To Warn US Against ‘Illegal Acts’ In Persian Gulf

Iran has written to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the U.N. Security Council, accusing the U.S. Navy of violating its territory and engaging in “illegal acts” in the Sea of Oman and the Persian Gulf.

In two identical letters circulated Friday, Iran's U.N. Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee said that the U.S. had repeatedly violated the country’s airspace and engaged in provocative acts in the Persian Gulf despite several warnings against such penetrations.

Khazaee urged Ban and the Security Council to warn the U.S. “against the continuation of acts in violation of international law and of the adverse consequences of any provocative and dangerous acts for which the United States government would be held responsible," the AFP has reported.

He cited a reported incident of a drone flying over the Persian Gulf Nov 1. He said that the U.S. violated his country’s airspace seven times over the coastal areas of Bushehr in October.

The White House has not reacted to Iran’s allegations.

Earlier this month, Iran said its fighter jets fired on a drone when the unmanned aerial vehicle crossed the country’s territory. Iran alleged that the drone was spying on the country’s oil tankers. However, the White House rebutted the allegations and said the drone was within the international airspace.

"Our aircraft was never in Iranian airspace. It was always flying in international air space. The recognized limit is 12 nautical miles off the coast and we never entered the 12 nautical mile limit," Pentagon Press Secretary George Little was quoted as saying by CNN.