Live Update From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Iran rejects ‘laughable’ Bolton accusation it was behind ship attack
Iran strongly rejects an accusation by US National Security Adviser John Bolton earlier that it was “almost certainly” behind the May 12 attacks on four ships off the United Arab Emirates.
“Making such laughable claims… is not strange” coming from the US, foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi says in a statement.
Bolton’s accusation, which follows a US military buildup in the Gulf, comes on the eve of emergency Arab and Gulf summits called by Iran’s regional arch-rival Saudi Arabia to discuss the standoff and ways to isolate Tehran.
Bolton said that additional US forces in the region were sent as a “deterrent” and that Washington’s response will be prudent.
— AFP