Two British tankers has been seized by the Iranian Revolutionary
Guard in the Gulf, say Iran media.
It is believed the Stena Impero and the Mesdar Crude Oil tanker
are heading towards Iran.
The Ministry of Defence and Foreign Office say the Government is
‘urgently seeking further information’, while Donald Trump confirmed the US
will begin talks with UK officials.
Stena Impero Management confirmed that its UK registered vessel
had been ‘approached by unidentified small crafts and a helicopter during
transit of the Strait of Hormuz while the vessel was in international waters’.
It added there are 23 seafarers on board, when the incident
occurred at around 4pm today.
The company said in a statement: ‘There have been no reported
injuries and their safety is of primary concern to both owners and managers.’
‘Northern Marine Management has not been able to establish contact directly
with the vessel since it was notified of the incident at approximately 16.00
today, 19th July 2019,’ added Stena Impero.
A second tanker, the Liberian-flagged MV Mesdar which is owned by
British company Norbulk Shipping UK Ltd, has also been seized according to a US
official.
Iran’s state news agency says the seized British-flagged tanker in
the gulf had turned off its tracker and ignored warnings.
But according to Tasnim news agency, the Iranian Ports and
Maritime Organisation said: ‘We received some reports on the British oil
tanker, Stena Impero, causing problems.
‘We asked the military forces to guide this tanker towards Bandar
Abbas port to have the required investigations carried out.’
Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt has been briefed on reports that
the tanker has moved towards Iranian waters, reported Sky.
Cobra, the government’s emergency committee, is currently meeting
in Whitehall to discuss the incident, reported the BBC.
A statement from the Foreign Office said: ‘We are urgently seeking
further information and assessing the situation following reports of an
incident in the Gulf.’
The incident comes amid heightened tensions between the UK and
Iran after Royal Marines seized an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar, which was
suspected of breaking EU laws.
The UK suspected the tanker was carrying oil to Syria and detained
it on July 4.
Iran then threatened to
seize a British oil tanker, causing the UK government to declare the threat of
shipping in Iranian waters as ‘critical’.
The Ministry of Defence said the following day Iranian ships had
attempted to hinder a British tanker but was diverted away by a Royal Navy
ship. However, Iran denied claims of attempting to seize the tanker.
Source: Metro
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