Attack on Iranian oil tanker in the Red Sea, UPDATES

RFE/RL
Fri, 11 Oct 2019 06:19 UTC

© TV IRIB/AFP

A picture released by Iranian state TV IRIB allegedly shows the Iranian crude oil tanker Sabiti sailing in the Red Sea on October 10.

Iran's Foreign Ministry says an Iranian oil tanker has been damaged in an "attack" in the Red Sea. "Those behind the attack are responsible for the consequences of this dangerous adventure, including the dangerous environmental pollution caused," ministry spokesman Abbas Musavi said on October 11.

Musavi said the vessel was struck twice in the span of half an hour, and an investigation was under way. The explosion, which is yet to be independently verified, comes amid heightened tensions in the region.

The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) earlier said the Sabiti oil tanker, said to carry 1 million barrels of oil, was hit by two missiles off the coast of Saudi Arabia. "All the ship's crew are safe and the ship is stable too," NITC added.

The hull of the vessel was hit by two separate explosions about 100 kilometers off the Saudi port city of Jeddah, according to the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC). "There is no fire" aboard the Sabiti and the ship is "completely stable," the statement said.

The oil leak from the Iranian tanker "has stopped and the situation is under control," state-run IRNA news agency reported. State television reported that two storerooms were damaged.

Images released by the Iranian Petroleum Ministry appeared to show no visible damage to the Sabiti visible from its bridge, while satellite images of the area showed no visible smoke, AP reported.

There was no immediate acknowledgement from Saudi officials of the incident.

A spokesman for the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, which is based in Bahrain, said the authorities there were "aware of reports of this incident," but declined to comment further.

The incident, which sent Benchmark Brent crude oil surging more than 2 percent to nearly $60.5, could heighten tensions between Iran and the United States and its allies.

A September 14 missile and drone attack on Saudi Arabia damaged the world's biggest petroleum-processing facility and knocked out more than 5 percent of global oil supply. The attack was claimed by Yemen's Iran-backed Shi'ite Huthi rebels, but Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Western European countries have blamed Iran.

U.S. officials have also accused Tehran of being responsible for attacks on two oil tankers in the Persian Gulf in June and July, as well as attacks on another four tankers in May. Iran has denied involvement in all these incidents.

Tehran and Washington have been at loggerheads since the United States last year withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.

Comment: Update: Sputnik, 11/10/2019: Iranian oil tanker hit two times

A vessel, operated by the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), reportedly caught fire 100 km (about 60 miles) from the Saudi port city of Jeddah. According to local media, the explosion inflicted heavy damages on the vessel, while oil spilt into the Red Sea.

According to ISNA, citing an official from National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), the route of its oil tanker has been changed. "It is still in the Red Sea but its route will change ... No help was offered to assist by any country".

Refinitiv shipping data showed that the status of the tanker was "underway using engine" with its destination set as Larak, an island off the Iranian coast.

The company said that the blasts were "probably caused by missile strikes".

• Oil Tanker Was Hit Two Times, Attacks Came in 30-Minutes Interval - Tehran Iran's oil tanker has suffered two attacks in the Red Sea, and Tehran is working to establish those responsibly, the Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said on Friday. "The investigation, conducted by the National Iranian Tanker Company, shows that the Iranian tanker ... was attacked twice, with an interval of around 30 minutes, and was damaged," Mousavi said in a statement.
• 11:57 Oil Spilled in Red Sea Following Attack on Iranian Tanker - Tehran Iranian Foreign Ministry's spokesman Abbas Mousavi confirmed on Friday that the incident with Iranian oil tanker has resulted in oil spilling and subsequent significant damage to the environment.
• 11:55 Iran's National Tanker Company Denies Reports Saudi Missiles Hit Its Oil Tanker
• 11:52 Tehran Says It's Working to Establish Those Responsible for Attack on Oil Tanker
• 11:49 It's Too Early to Accuse Someone of Having Launched Attack on Iranian Tanker - Moscow

© Google Orion-ME

Update: RT, 11/10/2019: Tehran confirms 2 projectiles

Tehran has confirmed that an Iranian-owned oil tanker, the Sinopa, was attacked in the Red Sea, and that the mysterious strike caused an oil spill.

"Those behind the attack are responsible for the consequences of this dangerous adventure, including the dangerous environmental pollution caused," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi told state media.

Update: RT, 11/10/2019: Explosions rock Iranian tanker

The incident is being treated as a terrorist attack, local media says.

Update: RT, 11/10/2019: Oil prices surge

The price of crude oil rose sharply on Friday morning after Iranian officials said that two rockets had struck an Iranian tanker traveling through the Red Sea.

International benchmark Brent rose over two percent to $60.34 per barrel by 7:30am GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained almost two percent to $54.60 per barrel.

"Spare capacity remains fragile and with supply chain vulnerability a worrying concern at virtually every Middle East oil field, traders continue to hedge supply risk premium," Stephen Innes, Asia Pacific market strategist at AxiTrader, told Reuters.

The oil tanker Sinopa was hit by two explosions at 5:00am and 5:20am local time.

Update: Bloomberg, 11/10/2019: Iranian oil tanker attacked, tensions remain high

A spokesman for the National Iranian Tanker Company, initially said in a call with Iran's Press TV that the missiles probably came from the direction of Saudi Arabia. NITC later withdrew that claim in a statement.

The Sabiti was fully laden with crude and heading toward the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea, according to Florian Thaler, chief executive of data analytics firm OilX. On its previous voyages it has carried Iranian crude to the East Mediterranean he said.

According to tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, the vessel was under way using its engine and heading south at a speed of 9.6 knots as of 8:45 a.m. London time. Its destination was listed as Larak, an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz.

The attack on the Sabiti came a day before Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is scheduled to visit Tehran for talks on how to reduce tensions with Saudi Arabia, Iranian lawmaker and member of the parliamentary commission for national security, Heshmattolah Falahatpisheh, said in an interview with the semi-official Iranian Labour News Agency.

The Pentagon said on Friday that it's sending more U.S. forces to the Middle East to "assure and enhance the defense of Saudi Arabia" against Iran. Overall about 3,000 personnel are being deployed or having their missions extended in the region.

© Bloomberg