2 oil tankers damaged in suspected attack in the Gulf of Oman, crew evacuated
Two oil tankers were damaged in a suspected attack off the Gulf of Oman early Thursday, according to multiple reports.
The U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet told Reuters it was assisting two tankers in the Gulf of Oman after receiving two distress calls. Details of the incident were unclear, but one of the operators made an unconfirmed report that a torpedo had hit its ship, Reuters reported.
"We are aware of the reported attack on tankers in the Gulf of Oman. U.S. Naval Forces in the region received two separate distress calls at 6:12 a.m. local time and a second one at 7:00 a.m.,'' Joshua Frey of the Fifth Fleet said. The Fleet did not blame anyone for the attack.
JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER AND TRUMP ALLY SHINZO ABE VISITS TEHRAN TO HELP EASE US-IRAN TENSIONS
This May 2018 image made available by Marine Traffic shows the MT Front Altair in Antwerp, Belgium. (Patrick Vereecke/Marine Traffic via AP)
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations -- an arm of the British Navy -- had put out an alert earlier and urged "extreme caution" amid U.S.-Iran tensions.
The incident comes as Iranian media claimed — without offering any evidence — that two oil tankers had been targeted in the area.
The area is near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic route through which 20 percent of global oil consumption passes from Middle East producers. Benchmark Brent crude, in apparent reaction to the incident, rose its prices by 3.4% on Thursday.
Dryad Global, a maritime intelligence firm, identified one of the vessels involved as the MT Front Altair a Marshall Islands-flagged crude oil tanker. The vessel was "on fire and adrift," Dryad added.
26 WOUNDED IN MISSILE ATTACK BY HOUTHI REBELS AT SAUDI AIRPORT: REPORT
FILE: The Norwegian-flagged oil tanker MT Andrea Victory off the coast of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. ((United Arab Emirates National Media Council via AP)
International Tanker Management, which operates the MT Front Altair said an explosion had caused a fire onboard. The firm told the Associated Press the incident is still being investigated and it was unclear what caused the explosion. Its 23 crew members were evacuated by the nearby Hyundai Dubai Vessel and are now safe, the firm said.
The other vessel, the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous, sustained damage on its hull starboard side, said BSM Ship Management. 21 sailors were evacuated, and one was slightly injured, four shipping and trade sources said.
UAE ACCUSES 'STATE ACTOR' FOR TANK ATTACKS, BUT STOPS JUST SHORT OF IRAN
Iranian state television reported that 44 sailors were transferred to an Iranian port in the southern province of Hormozgan.
Thursday's incident comes a month after the U.S. accused Iran of attacking ships off the coast of United Arab Emirates.
The timing of Thursday's incident was especially sensitive as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was visiting Iran as an interlocutor for President Donald Trump to ease tensions between Washington and Tehran.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, center, reviews an honor guard as he is welcomed by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, left, in an official arrival ceremony at the Saadabad Palace in Tehran. (AP)
On Wednesday, after talks with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Abe warned that any "accidental conflict" amid heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. must be avoided at all costs.
While meeting with Abe on Thursday, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that while Tehran doesn't want an atomic bomb, "America could not do anything" to stop Iran if it did.
Khamenei was quoted earlier saying that Iran "will in no way repeat" negotiations with the U.S. amid tension over its unraveling nuclear deal with world powers.
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Khamenei's official website quoted him as telling Abe: "I don't regard Trump as deserving any exchange of messages and have no response for him and will give no response."
https://www.foxnews.com/world/uk-maritime-groups-warns-of-incident-in-gulf-of-oman
And of course now they say "there's goes oil prices". Again? How long before we see this at the pumps? Watch.
Two oil tankers were damaged in a suspected attack off the Gulf of Oman early Thursday, according to multiple reports.
The U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet told Reuters it was assisting two tankers in the Gulf of Oman after receiving two distress calls. Details of the incident were unclear, but one of the operators made an unconfirmed report that a torpedo had hit its ship, Reuters reported.
"We are aware of the reported attack on tankers in the Gulf of Oman. U.S. Naval Forces in the region received two separate distress calls at 6:12 a.m. local time and a second one at 7:00 a.m.,'' Joshua Frey of the Fifth Fleet said. The Fleet did not blame anyone for the attack.
JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER AND TRUMP ALLY SHINZO ABE VISITS TEHRAN TO HELP EASE US-IRAN TENSIONS
This May 2018 image made available by Marine Traffic shows the MT Front Altair in Antwerp, Belgium. (Patrick Vereecke/Marine Traffic via AP)
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations -- an arm of the British Navy -- had put out an alert earlier and urged "extreme caution" amid U.S.-Iran tensions.
The incident comes as Iranian media claimed — without offering any evidence — that two oil tankers had been targeted in the area.
The area is near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic route through which 20 percent of global oil consumption passes from Middle East producers. Benchmark Brent crude, in apparent reaction to the incident, rose its prices by 3.4% on Thursday.
Dryad Global, a maritime intelligence firm, identified one of the vessels involved as the MT Front Altair a Marshall Islands-flagged crude oil tanker. The vessel was "on fire and adrift," Dryad added.
26 WOUNDED IN MISSILE ATTACK BY HOUTHI REBELS AT SAUDI AIRPORT: REPORT
FILE: The Norwegian-flagged oil tanker MT Andrea Victory off the coast of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. ((United Arab Emirates National Media Council via AP)
International Tanker Management, which operates the MT Front Altair said an explosion had caused a fire onboard. The firm told the Associated Press the incident is still being investigated and it was unclear what caused the explosion. Its 23 crew members were evacuated by the nearby Hyundai Dubai Vessel and are now safe, the firm said.
The other vessel, the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous, sustained damage on its hull starboard side, said BSM Ship Management. 21 sailors were evacuated, and one was slightly injured, four shipping and trade sources said.
UAE ACCUSES 'STATE ACTOR' FOR TANK ATTACKS, BUT STOPS JUST SHORT OF IRAN
Iranian state television reported that 44 sailors were transferred to an Iranian port in the southern province of Hormozgan.
Thursday's incident comes a month after the U.S. accused Iran of attacking ships off the coast of United Arab Emirates.
The timing of Thursday's incident was especially sensitive as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was visiting Iran as an interlocutor for President Donald Trump to ease tensions between Washington and Tehran.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, center, reviews an honor guard as he is welcomed by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, left, in an official arrival ceremony at the Saadabad Palace in Tehran. (AP)
On Wednesday, after talks with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Abe warned that any "accidental conflict" amid heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. must be avoided at all costs.
While meeting with Abe on Thursday, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that while Tehran doesn't want an atomic bomb, "America could not do anything" to stop Iran if it did.
Khamenei was quoted earlier saying that Iran "will in no way repeat" negotiations with the U.S. amid tension over its unraveling nuclear deal with world powers.
GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Khamenei's official website quoted him as telling Abe: "I don't regard Trump as deserving any exchange of messages and have no response for him and will give no response."
https://www.foxnews.com/world/uk-maritime-groups-warns-of-incident-in-gulf-of-oman
And of course now they say "there's goes oil prices". Again? How long before we see this at the pumps? Watch.