Farsi Island ( fa, جزیره فارسی, translit=jazīreye fârsī) is a tiny, barren

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian island ( Bushehr province) in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

. There is an IRGC Navy base on this island. The island has an area of about and is restricted from the public. The center of Farsi Island is located at latitude 27° 59' 36" N and longitude 50° 10' 22" E. Its maximum elevation is . The word ''Farsi'' means "Persian". In the late 1980s, during the "

Tanker War The Tanker War was a protracted series of armed skirmishes between Iran and Iraq against merchant vessels in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz from 1984 to 1988. The conflict was a part of the larger Iran–Iraq War. Background Prior to ...

" phase of the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Council ...

, the IRGC used speedboats to launch attacks from Farsi Island on vessels of Iraq and its allies, including Kuwait. The United States entered the Persian gulf to protect Kuwaiti oil shipments. Iran planted

naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any ...

s near Farsi Island on the route of the first convoy, consisted of US navy vessels escorting the Kuwaiti oil tanker ''Bridgeton,'' which hit one of the mines. On January 12, 2016, Iranian Revolutionary Guards forces stationed at the island apprehended two small vessels and their 10 U.S. Navy sailors after the latter entered Iranian waters. The incident prompted talks between the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the U.S. State Department regarding their release. All 10 sailors and their vessels were released unharmed the following morning.

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External links

Low resolution satellite imagery on Flash Earth
Islands of Iran Landforms of Bushehr Province Islands of the Persian Gulf Lighthouses in Iran {{Bushehr-geo-stub

See also

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External links