The US military said that the USS Bainbridge remains in contact with one of the vessels attacked this morning and “is the on-scene US command authority.”
“No interference with USS Bainbridge, or its mission, will be tolerated,” Lt. Col. Earl Brown, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said in a statement.
A US official told CNN that multiple small Iranian boats have entered the area and the US is monitoring their activity.
The USS Mason is headed to the scene to provide additional assistance. The acting US Ambassador Jonathan Cohen, echoed much of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s earlier comments in Washington, blaming Iran for the attack in an attempt to destabilize the region. Cohen repeated his earlier comment to an open council session in the Friday (14) morning calling the attacks “unacceptable.”
