Iran forced to return US sail drones seized at sea for second time

The US has for the second time this week compelled Iran to release US military sail drones that it tried to seize at sea, according to officials.

The US military has not officially commented on the incident. But a US defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, suggested the Iranians had sought to secretly seize the drones.

The official said an Iranian navy warship pulled two US sail drones completely out of the water on Thursday and then covered them with tarps.

Iran initially denied having any US property before returning them on Friday to the US warships that converged on the scene, a US official said.

Iran has been building up its naval presence in the Red Sea, near the coast of Yemen where Tehran backs the Houthi movement, after sending vessels there more than a decade ago to protect Iranian oil tankers and merchant ships against piracy.

The incident there, after an earlier one in the Gulf, was the latest reminder of military tensions between the US and Iran, even as both countries pursue nuclear talks. They follow exchanges of fire last week between the US troops and Iran-backed groups in Syria.

Iranian television footage aired on Friday appeared to show more than a dozen Iranian navy personnel pushing two drones into the sea from the deck of their vessel.

The US military, meanwhile, has expanded its use of sea-based drones in the region.