AGI – Tension rises in the Gulf of Oman, five days after the attack on an Israeli oil tanker, attributed to an Iranian drone, in which two crew members lost their lives. At least six oil tankers in the past few hours have warned they are “out of control” off the Emirate coast of Fujairah and one of them, the Panamanian Asphalt Princess, would have been kidnapped by at least eight gunmen who would have taken the crew hostage, according to reports from British intelligence sources, who point the finger at Iran and its allies. Lloyds List Maritime Intelligence confirmed to the BBC that the ship, which left Khor Fakkan (Emirates) and was destined for Sohar (Oman), is headed for Iran.
It is not clear what happened to the other five boats. According to Israeli media, the Golden Brilliant, flying the Singapore flag, was hit by a limpet mine. Katie McQue, the Washington Post correspondent from Dubai, reports that, according to an officer on board, the Golden Brilliant was not damaged but would have seen a drone flying low in its vicinity. Both ships are now in motion, as are the Vietnamese Abyss and the Queen Ematha, flying the flag of Guyana..
Among the oil tankers that had reported problems in the past few hours, the Indian Jag Pooja and the Kamdhenu, flying the Cook Islands flag, are still “not under control” but, in the absence of further information, it is not possible at the moment to exclude that they have encountered simple problems technicians. Uktmo, the British maritime safety agency, warned of “potential hijacking” only in connection with the Asphalt Princess. None of the oil tankers involved are linked to Israeli or British interests. An Omani Armed Forces plane is monitoring the area at low altitude.
The Revolutionary Guards have denied any involvement and branded the accusations as an attempt to create a pretext for “hostile actions” against Iran. A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Tehran reported “suspicion” that so many incidents had been accumulating in a short time and reiterated Iran’s readiness for cooperation. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has warned that the Jewish state is ready to “act alone” to counter the aggression of its great adversary.
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