The Defense Department of the United States has announced the drone used in the attack of the Mercer Street commercial vessel was produced in Iran, U. S. Central Command said in a statement Friday, August 6, 2021.
The statement outlined that a team sent to the vessel to investigate found that the ship off the coast of Oman was targeted by an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) “loaded with a military-grade explosive.” The drone attack on July 29, 2021 killed two.
“The use of Iranian designed and produced one way attack ‘kamikaze’ UAVs is a growing trend in the region,” the executive summary of the report said. “They are actively used by Iran and their proxies against coalition forces in the region, to include targets in Saudi Arabia and Iraq.” https://3d56db11c1e8530c3ccfd5213b27cdd9.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
The text of the following statement was released by the G7 foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and the High Representative of the European Union:
“We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and the High Representative of the European Union stand united in our commitment to maritime security and the protection of commercial shipping. We condemn the unlawful attack committed on a merchant vessel off the coast of Oman on 29 July, which killed a British and a Romanian national. This was a deliberate and targeted attack, and a clear violation of international law. All available evidence clearly points to Iran. There is no justification for this attack.
Vessels must be allowed to navigate freely in accordance with international law. We will continue to do our utmost to protect all shipping, upon which the global economy depends, so that it is able to operate freely and without being threatened by irresponsible and violent acts.
Iran’s behavior, alongside its support to proxy forces and non-state armed actors, threatens international peace and security. We call on Iran to stop all activities inconsistent with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, and call on all parties to play a constructive role in fostering regional stability and peace.”