According to Lloyds List Maritime Intelligence, a Panama-flagged ship has been hijacked by armed men in the Gulf of Oman and ordered to sail to Iran, reports BBC.
What happened?
Reports said that armed gang stormed the ship yesterday evening close to the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
It is not clear who has seized the ship but analysts says Iranian forces will be suspected.
Reports dismissed
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards dismissed the reports as a pretext for “hostile action” against Tehran.
Recent oil tanker attack
The incident comes less than a week after an oil tanker operated by an Israeli-owned company was attacked by a drone off Oman, killing two security guards – one British and the other Romanian.
For more information read our article Tanker Attacked, 2 Crew Killed
The US, UK and Israel blamed Iran for the attack – a claim it strongly denies.
Armed gang stormed the ship
BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner says that, according to reports, up to nine armed men boarded the MV Asphalt Princess as it neared the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world’s maritime oil supplies passes.
Caution from UKMTO
Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) advised shipping near Fujairah in the Gulf of Oman to exercise extreme caution.
A spokesperson for the UK Foreign Office said it was urgently investigating reports of an incident on a vessel off the UAE coast.
Potential hijack
The White House called the reports “deeply disturbing”.
UKMTO had initially warned ships of an incident before declaring a “potential hijack” hours later.
Ship hijacked two years ago
BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner says the MV Asphalt Princess is owned by a Dubai-based company that had one of its ships hijacked two years ago by revolutionary guards.
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Source: BBC
