http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/24/world/meast/iran-pirates/index.html?hpt=hp_t2


(CNN) -- Iranian sailors helped scare off armed
pirates who attacked an American cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman, Iranian
state media reported Thursday.
Iran detains 13 alleged pirates after clash


It's the latest example
of U.S.-Iranian cooperation on pirate-infested high seas despite a wave
of tensions between Washington and Tehran over the decades.
EU forces attack pirate targets on Somali shore


The incident occurred
northeast of Fujairah, a port for refueling oil tankers, Fars News
Agency said. The port, in the United Arab Emirates, is close to the
Strait of Hormuz, an important oil shipping lane.
Iranian Navy vessels received a distress signal from the U.S. cargo ship Maersk Texas during patrols.


The forces announced
their willingness to help. As they closed in on the American cargo ship,
the pirates scattered. The U.S. ship crew thanked the Iranian naval
force and continued on its way, state media reported.
The United States, Iran
and other nations have been intent on repelling pirates operating in the
Gulf of Aden and other bodies of water.
Pirate attacks down off Somalia, up off Nigeria


American forces assisted or rescued Iranians at sea several times in January.


U.S. sailors aboard a guided-missile destroyer aided the crew of a sinking Iranian fishing vessel in the Arabian Sea. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued six Iranian mariners at the northern end of the Persian Gulf, the Pentagon said. The destroyer USS Kidd rescued 13 Iranian sailors from a hijacked fishing boat near the Strait of Hormuz.


Tehran has threatened to
close the the strait if sanctions are imposed on its exports of crude
oil. The West has been using sanctions and diplomacy to try to stop Iran
from producing nuclear weapons.