Today, Iran attacked two oil tanker vessels in the Strait of Hormuz – one belonging to Qatar and the other to Saudi Arabia. The Jerusalem Post reports that both ships were damaged significantly but there were no causalities. Qatar has called the sudden strike a clear violation of international law and said that Tehran bears full responsibility for the damages.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned ships in recent days to remain on Iranian-designated routes rather than the US-designated route near the coast of Oman. “Our missiles and drones are ready to fire at you,” the IRGC told ships over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The ships were a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker damaged near the coast of Oman and a Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker, the Al Rekayyat, which was struck in the same area, according to maritime security sources.
The cause of the blast was unknown, and the crude tanker that hit was believed to be the Wedyan supertanker, the sources said.
The Wedyan’s last position was in the Gulf on July 3, according to ship-tracking data on the MarineTraffic platform. Saudi officials could not be immediately reached for comment.
The crew of the Qatari tanker was being evacuated after the hit, three sources said later on Tuesday.
The Al Rekayyat was loaded with LNG and sent out distress signals seeking assistance after it was hit on its port side, another source said earlier on Tuesday.
The vessel’s condition was not known at this stage, the three sources said.
Talks between the U.S. and Iran were brought to a temporary halt while the country held the mass funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei this week. A major issue of the ongoing talks is still the question of transit fees through the Strait.
The Fellowship and our supporters pray for those who may have been injured in these incidents, and for the day when shalom, peace, will reign over the region.
