UAE says Iran attacked two vessels
Iran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait, frequently attacking commercial ships.
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Iran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait, frequently attacking commercial ships.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday blamed Iran for attacks on two vessels linked to its state-owned oil company as they passed through the Strait of Hormuz a day earlier.
Iran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait, frequently attacking commercial ships, and wants to charge users for passage, which the United States fiercely opposes.
The UAE foreign ministry denounced what it called “the hostile Iranian attack” targeting two vessels affiliated with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) “with no injuries reported.”
ADNOC confirmed “two of its vessels were attacked while transiting” the waterway on Thursday evening, adding the situation was “brought under control,” the official WAM news agency reported.
On Friday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported two identical incidents of drone strikes on tankers in Hormuz a day earlier, causing minor damage but no casualties.
It was not clear whether they were referring to the ADNOC-affiliated ships.
“UKMTO has received reports from military authorities that a tanker was struck by a Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle whilst conducting an outbound transit of the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel was subject to minor damage, crew are reported as safe and accounted for and no environmental impact has been reported,” it said in both statements.
Last week, ADNOC had said three of its tankers had been attacked in the strait, with the UAE foreign ministry reporting an attack on an ADNOC tanker a day later.
Continued attacks in the strait, which was free to transit before the Middle East war began in February, led to the collapse of an April ceasefire between the US and Iran.
A June deal — meant to serve as a jumping-off point for negotiations on a permanent settlement — had said Iran and Oman, also bordering the waterway, would hash out future arrangements for the strait in discussion with other Gulf countries and “in line with the applicable international law.”
Last week, Iranian security chief Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr laid out a laundry list of conditions for reopening the strait, including an end to the “war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq.”
He also demanded the lifting of a parallel US naval blockade of Iran, the end of sanctions, the release of frozen assets, and compensation for wartime damage, according to remarks reported by Tasnim news agency.
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