Status: 11/16/2022 3:09 p.m
The Pacific Zircon oil tanker has been shelled off the coast of Oman. Nobody got hurt. The tanker is owned by an Israeli billionaire. It is still unclear who is behind the attack.
An oil tanker has been “hit by a projectile” off the coast of Oman. This was announced by the operating company Eastern Pacific Shipping. The “Pacific Zircon” loaded with gas oil suffered minor damage. The crew was not injured, and no cargo escaped from the ship’s tanks.
Eastern Pacific Shipping is owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer. Three maritime sources told Reuters news agency that a drone attacked the tanker. An Israeli official said Iran was responsible for the attack and used a Shahed-136 drone, the type it supplied to Russia for use in Ukraine. The offices of the Israeli prime minister and defense minister declined to comment on the incident.
Already in 2021 suspected drone attack on tankers
A British military organization monitoring shipping in the region told the AP news agency it was aware of and was investigating an incident. The Iranian newspaper “Nournews” in turn blamed Israel for the attack.
The incident comes at a time of escalating tensions between the West and Iran. In 2019, the US blamed Iran for a series of attacks on tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. At that time, Tehran had started to ramp up its nuclear program after the US withdrew from the international agreement limiting it.
In July 2021, a suspected drone attack hit a petroleum products tanker managed by an Israeli company off the coast of Oman. Iran has denied allegations of responsibility.