TEHRAN -- The Iranian operation to release its stolen oil shipment carried the message that the country’s armed forces are not afraid of any military confrontation with the United States, a prominent Arab journalist says.
The operation conducted by the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s heliborne troops to release the country’s stolen oil literally said “we do not fear you, that we are ready for military confrontation, and that we are prepared to respond to any aggression against us regardless of the price,” Abdul Bari Atwan, editor-in-chief of Rai al-Youm, wrote in an editorial.
The IRGC’s Navy released a video on Wednesday showing Iranian forces landing on the deck of a tanker that had seized an Iranian oil shipment in an “act of piracy”. They then navigated the vessel toward Iranian waters. The incident took place on October 25.
Earlier, American forces had confiscated a tanker carrying the cargo of Iranian oil in the strategic Sea of Oman and had transferred its consignment of crude to the IRGC-captured MV Sothys, a Vietnamese-flagged ship.
In a statement, the IRGC said that after the American forces transferred the crude to the second vessel, “timely and powerful” action by the Guards’ servicemen “frustrated the operation by the terrorist U.S. Army’s naval forces to steal the Islamic Republic of Iran’s oil in the Sea of Oman.”
Atwan said the footage demonstrated the IRGC forces’ success in releasing Iran’s stolen oil.
“The immediate and successful Iranian response came as a shock to the American administration and its military leadership, because they expected Iran” to put up with the blow and not respond, he stated.
The seizure of Iran’s oil shipment by

U.S. forces constitutes “the most heinous form of official piracy and a public declaration of war against Iran,” the Palestinian journalist said.
Atwan pointed out that the U.S. is still digesting its “disgraceful defeat” in Afghanistan.
“America, which suffered a disgraceful defeat in Afghanistan, and withdrew in a humiliating manner from it, only four months ago, is still licking its wounds, and trying to live with this defeat,” he argued.
The commentator added that getting involved in a war with Iran is not something that the U.S. sees as plausible at the current juncture.
Thousands of Iranians on Thursday took to the social media network Twitter to mockingly ask Washington whether or not it has learned its lesson.
“Never approach Iranian tankers again. Is the #lesson_learned or should we continue?!” one user wrote.
Using the #lesson_learned hashtag, another Twitter user lauded those who captured the vessel as Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani’s true soldiers.
“If you are wise, you will never underestimate the power of Iran again,” wrote another, posting photos of previous encounters between Iran and the U.S.
Others hailed Iran as the “land of the brave.” They derisively advised the U.S. military against getting too close to Iranian tankers or “we will land on your tanker.”
They pitied the “so-called superpower” for ending up “robbing ships” and also, they reminded Washington of the humiliating detention of American Navy sailors by the IRGC in 2016, urging the US not to “let those days be repeated.”
The nonchalant posture of one of the Iranian soldiers during the encounter also drew particular attention.
“Things that concern others, entertain us,” according to a user.