Naval Flotilla Returns

The Iranian Navy's 47th flotilla returned to the country on Saturday after a mission that took over two months. The naval flotilla, comprising Alborz destroyer and Bushehr warship, berthed at the southern port city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday morning, Tasnim News Agency reported. The flotilla had started its voyage on June 11. It went to Oman before sailing into international waters north of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. In early August, it made a port call at Oman's Salalah. According to commander of the flotilla, it has tracked more than 1,700 oil tankers and trade vessels as well as above 300 military squadrons of other countries during its mission in the high seas. In recent years, Iran's naval forces have increased their presence in high seas to secure naval routes and protect merchant vessels and oil tankers against pirates.