A Pentagon official told Al Jazeera that two US Navy ships rescued 5 Iranian sailors after their boat exploded in the Gulf of Oman.
Al-Jazeera correspondent quoted the American official as saying that the boat did not carry any flag identifying him, and that he was smuggling a huge shipment of drugs.
Al-Jazeera correspondent added that the US forces transferred the Iranian sailors to Oman, where two of them underwent treatment.
The US official explained that the two warships were patrolling to combat drug smuggling in the Gulf of Oman when they spotted the explosion that occurred on board the boat.
The US official refused to disclose the destination of the boat.
In the same context, a statement issued by the Omani army said that it had carried out a medical evacuation by helicopter of two Iranian nationals, after a wooden boat carrying them suffered an effective technical failure.
The statement added that a US Navy ship was near the site and rescued them, and then transported them via an Omani helicopter to Khawla Hospital in the capital, Muscat, for treatment, while 3 other injured people were transferred to Sultan Qaboos Port in Muscat.