I’m not aware yet of any facts that support Iran’s declaration that the U.S. Navy tried to take an Iranian oil tanker. “Iran claims it thwarted a U.S. attempt to “steal” a tanker full of oil,” Tucker Reals, CBS, November 3, 2021.
“Video Shows U.S. Destroyer’s Very Intimate Standoff With Iranian Vessels Over Seized Oil Tanker (Updated),” Joseph Trevithick, The War Zone, November 3, 2021. “Iran’s raid on an oil tanker resulted in an incredibly close encounter between its gunboats and a U.S. Navy destroyer.”
One of the facets of the ongoing dispute between Iran and the world is the NYT’s (and some other major media) refusal to look at the track record of Iran’s claims. Instead, the NYT portrays this story and many others, especially as they unfold, as conflicting stories between Iran and the U.S. The reader doesn’t know who to believe. But if the NYT would run a story or remind its readers of Iran’s very long history of duplicity in these types of matters it would give better context and understanding to readers. See “Iran Seizes an Oil Tanker, but Whose Tanker Is Disputed,” Farnaz Fassihi and Eric Schmitt, New York Times, November 3, 2021.