<a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/iran/" target="_blank">Iran</a> has said it chased off an American plane near its airspace on Sunday. Tasnim News Agency said the navy prevented “an American spy plane” from approaching Iran after it flew over its waters near the Gulf of Oman. Outlets affiliated with the<a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2023/03/27/tugendhat-says-uk-will-proscribe-irans-irgc-but-gives-no-time/" target="_blank"> Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps</a> said navy commanders “sent a warning” after a US Navy EP-3E aircraft had entered Iran’s territory. The plane then moved away from the country's air border and returned to international routes, Tasnim reported. There was no immediate comment from the US. The US Navy often intercepts Iranian ships smuggling weapons and fuel in the Gulf of Oman. On Friday, it said it was looking to keep <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/2023/04/01/us-seeks-to-keep-ammunition-seized-en-route-to-yemen/" target="_blank">more than one million rounds of ammunition </a>it seized en route to Yemen in December. The US said it had "disrupted a major operation by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to smuggle weapons of war into the hands of a militant group in Yemen". The US blamed Iran for a spate of attacks on tankers in waters off the Iranian coast in 2019. In 2021, two people were killed in an attack on an oil tanker in the Arabian Gulf. The US Navy said Iran was behind the drone attack. It has also accused Tehran of attacking an <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/gulf-news/2022/11/16/oil-tanker-attacked-by-drone-off-oman-coast/" target="_blank">Israeli-owned tanker </a>off the coast of Oman in November. The US has since stepped up its military co-operation with Israel in a bid to counter Iran's military threat. The two countries held their most significant joint drills in years in January, designed to "send a message to Iran". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made Iran a priority for his government since returning to power in November. Israel has since launched several strikes on Iran-linked sites in Syria, including Damascus and Aleppo airports.
