A US-led maritime exercise including 60 nations and organizations kicked off in and around Gulf waters with Israel joining for the first time alongside nations that do not recognize it, French news agency AFP reported on Tuesday.
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The US navy said Tuesday that the 18-day biennial International Maritime Exercise (IMX) since Monday includes 50 vessels and 9,000 personnel from more than 60 entities.
With more than 80 drones, it is also the world's largest unmanned drill, it added from Bahrain, where the 5th Fleet is headquartered.
The exercise comes at a time of regional tensions over Iran's nuclear program and Yemen's Houthi rebels' recent targeting of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with missiles and drones.
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It includes a number of countries – among them Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Oman and Yemen – that do not have formal diplomatic relations with Israel.
However, Saudi Arabia and Israel share the same desire to contain their common foe Iran.
i24NEWS contributed to this report.
