Iran warned a U.S. destroyer on Wednesday to alter course after it approached water being monitored by the Islamic Republic. The U.S. ship turned away, Iranian media reported.

No immediate comments were made by the U.S. Navy or the U.S. Central Command which oversees U.S. Forces in the Middle East.

The reported incident comes after U.S. airstrikes last month against Iranian nuclear facilities, which Washington claims were part of a programme geared toward developing nuclear weapons. Tehran insists that the nuclear program is purely for civilian purposes.

The Iranian state TV reported that the U.S. destroyer "Fitzgerald" had made a provocative attempt to approach the waters monitored by Iran. A Navy helicopter approached the destroyer quickly and warned it to leave.

State TV reported that the U.S. destroyer had threatened the Iranian helicopter but had moved away after repeated warnings.

Iranian state media identified this vessel as "DDG Fitzgerald". They also said that the Iranian Army had contacted the vessel, claiming the helicopter was in its care and asked the ship to turn south. (Reporting and Editing by William Maclean, Elwely Elwelly)

(source: Reuters)