Ship Ablaze Off Oman As Iran Increases Ship Attacks, UKMTO Reports

A commercial vessel was reportedly on fire in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, the British maritime surveillance agency UKMTO said, amidst an increase in naval confrontations between the U.S and Iran in the waterway. The blaze was seen by the captain of a nearby vessel, 9 nautical miles north of Khasab in Oman.

UKMTO could not immediately confirm the cause of the incident, the condition of the crew or any associated environmental pollution. It advised ships operating in the region to practice caution during their transit, which remains risky as attacks on commercial vessels have escalated.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also said that 3 tankers had exploded and caught fire in 24 hours, after accidentally stepping on sea mines.

Tehran claimed that they had switched off their transponders and used an ‘unauthorised’ southern route to cross Hormuz, despite several warnings.

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