Two oil tankers were reportedly attacked in the Gulf of Oman. Wu I-fang, a spokesman for Taiwan’s state oil refiner CPC Corp, who chartered the Front Altair, said the tanker was carrying 75,000 of naphtha and was “suspected of being hit by a torpedo.”
🎥 نخستین تصاویر از انفجارهای صورت گرفته در نفتکش ها در دریای عمان#انفجار_ناقلتي_نفط_ببحر_عُمان pic.twitter.com/cHjMA762lQ
— خبرگزاری صداوسیما (@iribnewsFa) June 13, 2019
Other reports suggest it was a mine attack, although neither have been confirmed.
The Kokuka Courageous had 21 crew on board and the Front Altair had 23 crew on board, both ships evacuated all crew members.
The US Naval 5th Fleet based in Bahrain said they received two seperate distress calls and sent the USS Bainbridge to assist.
عکسی از حادثه امروز برای #نفتکش ها#انفجار_ناقلتي_نفط_ببحر_عُمان #oiltanker pic.twitter.com/49kpytPiMG
— خبرگزاری صداوسیما (@iribnewsFa) June 13, 2019
Josh Frey, a spokesman said in a statement the “US naval forces in the region received two separate distress calls at 06:12 local time (03:12 GMT) and a second one at 07:00.”
The British prime minister’s spokesman said the UK are urgently seeking to establish all the facts. This incident comes after four oil tankers were attacked of the coast of the UAE last month, and the UUA blamed an unnamed “state actor.”
Japan’s trade ministry said both vessels were carrying “Japan related” cargo.
Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister has called for regional talks and said the incidents are “suspicious.”
He tweeted, “Suspicious doesn’t begin to describe what likely transpired this morning.”
After the attacks all major Gulf stock markets dropped, oil prices have risen by around 4%.
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