Iranians: U.S. Navy ship fired warning flares in Persian Gulf

USS Nimitz

Credit: Universal History Archive

Credit: Universal History Archive

USS Nimitz

A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier fired warning flares at Iranian vessels in the Persian Gulf on Friday, according to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

In a statement Saturday, the IRGC navy said the American ship was "unprofessional and provocative," CNN reported.

The USS Nimitz and a second American ship approached the Iranian ships, the IRGC navy said. The Iranian vessels ignored the flares, and the U.S. ships later left the area, CNN reported.

Pentagon spokesman U.S. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis previously told reporters that there had been 35 incidents of unsafe or unprofessional behavior by Iranian vessels in 2016, CNN reported.