Iran says oil tanker struck by rockets off Saudi Arabia

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Iran, Iranian tanker, oil tanker, rockets, Red Sea, Saudi Arabia, Bandar Abbas
That vessel last turned on its tracking devices in August near the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas.- AP file photo

Tehran, Iran - Iranian state television said the explosion damaged two storerooms aboard the unnamed oil tanker.

By AP

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Published: Fri 11 Oct 2019, 10:00 AM

Last updated: Sun 16 Feb 2020, 10:32 PM

Two rockets struck an Iranian tanker traveling through the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia on Friday, October 11, Iranian officials said, the latest incident in the region amid months of heightened tensions between Tehran and the US.
There was no word from Saudi Arabia on the reported attack and Saudi officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Iranian state television said the explosion damaged two storerooms aboard the unnamed oil tanker and caused an oil leak into the Red Sea near the Saudi port city of Jeddah.
The state-run IRNA news agency, quoting Iran's National Iranian Tanker Co., identified the stricken vessel as the Sabity. That vessel last turned on its tracking devices in August near the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas.
Lt. Pete Pagano, a spokesman for the US Navy's 5th Fleet overseeing the Mideast, said authorities there were "aware of reports of this incident," but declined to comment further.
Friday's incident could push tensions between Iran and the US even higher, more than a year after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the nuclear deal and imposed sanctions now crushing Iran's economy.
The mysterious attacks on oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, Iran shooting down a US military surveillance drone and other incidents across the wider Middle East followed Trump's decision.
 


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