A vessel caught fire and was left adrift off the coast of Oman after being struck by an unidentified projectile near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Monday.
The incident occurred about 15 km (8 nautical miles) northwest of Kumzar, Oman, prompting the crew to abandon the vessel.
“The crew safely abandoned the vessel and have been recovered by a tug boat. The fire has not been extinguished,” UKMTO said in an advisory, adding that no environmental impact had been reported.Earlier, UKMTO said it had received a report of a vessel on fire eight nautical miles northwest of Kumzar, near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said two “non-compliant” tankers had been “brought to a halt,” according to state news agency IRNA.
UKMTO said the vessel remained unmanned and adrift as emergency efforts continued.”The fire has not been extinguished and the vessel is currently adrift,” the agency said.
The incident highlights heightened security risks in and around the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping route, where the U.S. military has previously advised commercial vessels to follow routes closer to Oman while transiting the waterway.
Meanwhile, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has reiterated that Iran’s role in the Strait of Hormuz are not open to negotiation.
Baghaei said Iran’s position as a coastal state gave it “legal rights” in the strategic waterway regardless of any memorandum of understanding.
He said recent US and Israeli military attacks, along with what he described as support from some regional countries, underscored the need to prevent the waterway from being used against Iran’s security interests.
Baghaei said Iran would work with Oman on measures related to the management and security of the Strait of Hormuz.
