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EGYPT: Iranian naval vessels seek to pass through Suez Canal on Tuesday

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The Egyptian agent for two Iranian naval ships has requested that the vessels pass through the Suez Canal on Tuesday, a canal official told Reuters on Monday.

The move marks Iran’s first attempt in three decades to send warships through the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean on Europe’s -- and NATO’s -- southern flank, and experts have speculated that it could further destabilize the volatile region.

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Israeli officials have said they take a ‘grave view’ of the proposed transit, which the country’s foreign minister called a ‘provocation.’

The northbound convoy would include an Iranian frigate and supply ship scheduled to depart the Red Sea for the Mediterranean at 6 a.m., according to the Suez Canal schedule.

-- Molly Hennessy-Fiske

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