Iran initially denied having seized U.S. sea drones, U.S. official says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An Iranian Navy warship pulled two U.S. sail drones out of the water on Thursday, covered them with tarps, and denied having any U.S. property before returning them on Friday to the U.S. warships that converged on the scene, a U.S. official said.

The account by the U.S. official, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, was different than the one offered by Iran’s state television, which accused the unmanned U.S. vessels of jeopardizing maritime safety.

It was the second incident this week involving the Iranian seizure of U.S. drones operating in the region.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)