York-based Marines provide security on merchant ship
Marines based in Yorktown were recently put on a merchant ship to provide security as it transited through the Strait of Hormuz amid a time of heightened tensions with Iran.
The Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team, known as FAST, embarked aboard the Arc Liberty, a civilian cargo ship Norfolk-based Military Sealift Command routinely charters to carry military supplies throughout the region.
The ship made its way through the Strait of Hormuz, which borders Iran, on Oct. 21, according to a Navy news release. Public Navy photographs show the team of
Marines stayed with the Arc Liberty for several days.
“We are focused on maintaining strong defenses and exposing nefarious actors,” Vice Adm. Jim Malloy, commander of the Navy’s Fifth Fleet, said in a statement. “We are not seeking conflict, but we will be prepared to defend ourselves and respond to attacks on U.S. forces and our interests.”
FAST units are part of the Marine Corps Security Force Battalion. They are trained in martial arts, counter surveillance, physical security operations and urban combat, and can deploy on short notice to U.S. installations overseas, including embassies and consulates.
Tensions have worsened in the region ever since Iran commandeered a British oil tanker in the strait earlier this summer and Saudi Arabian oil facilities came under attack.
The United States launched Operation Sentinel in July to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz and other critical waterways in the Middle East. The Norfolk-based destroyer USS Gonzalez escorted 20 merchant ships through the strait before it returned to Virginia last month.
“The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps has and will continue to protect U.S. forces and interests in the region,” Malloy said. “This includes routine escorting and embarking on U.S. flagged vessels transiting through the region.”