U.S., Aussies Fire On and Board Iraq Ship

U.S. and Australian naval ships fired warning shots and halted an Iraqi tanker in the Gulf of Oman today as part of the effort to enforce trading sanctions against Iraq, the Pentagon said.

A joint boarding party from the two ships--the United States’ Brewton and Australia’s Darwin--boarded the tanker Al-Fao to identify its cargo before it was permitted to proceed to its destination.

“A joint boarding party . . . boarded the tanker, conducted a coordinated investigation and determined that the ship contained no prohibited cargo,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

The Iraqi ship was permitted to proceed to its destination--the Iraqi port of Basra--nearly five hours after the first shots were fired, the Pentagon said.

President Bush confirmed that the incident occurred but gave few details during an impromptu session with reporters at the White House.

Bush said the action was taken “in accordance with the United Nations resolutions, in accordance with the sanctions.”

The President said the shots were fired because “it required a bit of a warning before the captain pulled over and permitted the boarding party to have a look.”

Asked if today’s events placed the United States any closer to a war with Iraq, Bush said:

“I wouldn’t put it closer to a war situation. I still hope that this matter can be peacefully resolved. And the way for that to happen is for Iraq to comply with the sanctions.”

The incident was the third in the effort to put a stranglehold on Iraqi shipping.

The first shots were fired on Aug. 18, when U.S. Navy ships attempted to halt two Iraqi tankers from departing the Persian Gulf region. However, neither of those ships was boarded.