An oil tanker that was once at the center of a crisis between Iran and the United States was boarded by “unauthorized” people in military uniform in the Gulf of Oman early Thursday, an advisory group run by the British military and a private security firm said. I warned you. .
Details remain unclear about what appears to be the latest ship seizure in the tense Middle East shipping lanes.
But the ship, formerly known as the Suez Rajan, was embroiled in a year-long conflict that culminated in the U.S. Department of Justice seizing 1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil on board. Suspicion was focused on Iran.
The apparent seizure also comes after weeks of attacks by Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels on shipping in the Red Sea, including the largest ever barrage of drones and missiles launched late Tuesday. It was conducted.
This is why patrols of the vital waterway are currently underway, especially after Wednesday's UN Security Council resolution condemning the Houthis and US and UK officials warning of the potential consequences of an attack. The risk of a possible retaliatory attack by US-led forces is increasing.
The British military's British Sea Trade Operations, which has issued a warning to sailors in the Middle East, said Thursday's apparent seizure began early in the morning in waters between Oman and Iran, an area transited by ships entering and exiting the Iranian Strait. . Hormuz is the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which one-fifth of all oil trade passes.
The British military-run group said it had received a report from the ship's security officer who said he and the captain had heard an “unknown voice on the phone.”
Further efforts to contact the ship were unsuccessful, and the statement said the men on board were wearing “black military uniforms and black masks.”
Private security firm Ambry said “six military personnel” were on board the vessel, which it identified as the oil tanker St. Nicholas. The men are said to have hidden surveillance cameras while riding the vehicle.
The tanker was off the coast of the Iraqi city of Basra, loading crude oil bound for Aliaga, Turkey, for Turkish oil refinery Tupras.
Satellite tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press last showed the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker turning around and headed for Iran's Bandar-e-Jask port.
St. Nicholas was previously named Suez Rajan in partnership with Greek shipping company Empire Navigation.
Athens-based Empire Navigation confirmed in a statement to The Associated Press that it had lost contact with the ship, which had a crew of 18 Filipinos and one Greek.
The company did not provide details.
The Suez Rajan began to attract attention in February 2022, when Iranian anti-nuclear groups suspected that the tanker was carrying oil from Iran's Kharg Island, a major oil distribution terminal in the Persian Gulf. That was when it was announced.
Satellite photos and shipping data analyzed by The Associated Press at the time supported this claim.
The ship had been anchored in the South China Sea off the northeast coast of Singapore for months, when it suddenly set sail for the Texas coast without explanation.
The ship unloaded its cargo in August onto another tanker, which released the crude oil in Houston as part of a Justice Department order.
In September, Empire Navigation pled guilty to smuggling sanctioned Iranian oil and agreed to pay a $2.4 million fine over the tanker incident.
The U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, which patrols the Middle East, did not respond to a request for comment on the incident. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency cited foreign reports and mentioned the flight, but said nothing further.
Iran's mission to the United Nations also did not respond to requests for comment.
After the Suez Rajan convoy headed for the United States, Iran seized two tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, including one carrying cargo from US oil giant Chevron.
In July, the Revolutionary Guards' top naval commander threatened further action against anyone unloading the Suez Rajang, and state media linked the cargo's fate to the recent seizure.
Since the collapse of the Iran nuclear deal, there have been a number of Iranian seizures and attacks on ships in the waters surrounding the strait, which the navy claims are the work of Tehran.
Iran and its navy have also experienced a series of tense confrontations in the waterway, but recent attention has focused on Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
The United States and its allies have also been seizing Iranian oil cargoes since 2019.
This has led to a series of attacks in the Middle East blamed on the Islamic Republic and the seizure of ships by Iranian forces and militias, threatening global shipping.
The Houthis say their attacks are aimed at ending Palestinian suffering in Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
But rebels are increasingly targeting ships with weak or no ties to Israel.
Meanwhile, satellite tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press on Thursday showed that an Iranian cargo ship suspected of being a spy hub in the Red Sea had left the waterway.
Data showed that the Beshad entered the Gulf of Aden through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Beshad has been in the Red Sea off the coast of Eritrea's Dharak Islands since 2021.
Amid a growing shadow war in the region with attacks on ships, the base comes after Iran removed the Sabiz base, another spy base in the Red Sea that analysts said was damaged in an Israeli attack. arrived at.
