A suspected Iranian surveillance ship is making its way back to Iran amid concerns over a possible Israeli strike, according to Bloomberg. The Behshad ship left its position near Yemen’s coast on April 4 and stopped transmitting its location until reappearing near the Strait of Hormuz on April 18.
Bloomberg reports the ship’s signals suggest it will reach Iran’s Bandar Abbas port later today. The Behshad is listed as a commercial cargo ship under a Tehran-based company that the US Treasury has sanctioned for being a front for Iran’s state-run shipping lines.
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The ship has been stationed in the Red Sea since 2021, following Iran’s removal of the Saviz, another suspected surveillance ship in the Red Sea that was damaged in an attack linked to Israel as part of an ongoing shadow conflict involving regional ship attacks.
Iran had previously claimed the Saviz supported “anti-piracy” efforts in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. In March, Tehran cautioned the US against targeting either vessel.
Over the weekend, Iran launched more than 300 missiles, drones, and rockets at Israel, citing retaliation for an alleged Israeli attack on April 1 in Damascus that reportedly struck a consular building, killing two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps generals and several other officers. Most of the projectiles fired at Israel were intercepted, though a girl was severely injured.
On April 17, the former intelligence chief of Mossad, Israel’s spy agency, has stated that targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities is a potential course of action as Israel contemplates its response to Saturday’s attack. In an interview with The World’s Yalda Hakim in Jerusalem, Zohar Palti discussed possible responses following Iran’s launch of over 300 missiles and drones at Israel.
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When asked if all options were being considered, including striking nuclear facilities, Palti responded: “Absolutely. Everything is on the table at the moment.”
When asked specifically about targeting nuclear facilities, he confirmed: “Yes, everything is being considered.”
On Sunday, Iran temporarily closed its nuclear facilities due to “security concerns,” and the International Atomic Energy Agency suspended inspections for two days.
