Iran says 'US aircraft carrier' spotted off its coast is a movie prop

[ULike2CarryModBalls]

Iran says 'US aircraft carrier' spotted off its coast is a movie prop

PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 25 March, 2014, 12:17am
UPDATED : Tuesday, 25 March, 2014, 12:17am

Reuters in Dubai

The replica Nimitz class aircraft carrier that Iran is building near Bandar Abbas. Photo: DigitalGlobe

A replica of a US aircraft carrier spotted off Iran is nothing more sinister than a movie set, according to Iranian media.

The New York Times, quoting United States intelligence, said last week that the Iranians were building a mock-up of a carrier, possibly so they could then blow it up for propaganda purposes.

Satellite photos showed what appeared to be one of the US navy's Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, complete with planes, rising from Iran's Gachin shipyard, near the port of Bandar Abbas.

Iranian newspapers said on Sunday it was part of a movie being made by director Nader Talebzadeh on the 1988 shooting down of an Iranian passenger plane by the USS Vincennes.

The US said the downing of the plane, which killed all 290 passengers and crew, was an accident.

"The issue has turned into a good excuse for another wave of hype against Iran," said the Alef news website, which carries views close to the official line in Iran. "Without any proof or real basis, Western media have jumped again to paint a more negative picture of Iran."