Gulf of Oman attack – Shocking pics show huge explosions on US-linked oil tanker ‘hit by torpedo’ as two ships attacked near Iran
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By Mark Hodge
13 Jun 2019, 12:50
Updated: 13 Jun 2019, 13:45
SHOCKING pictures show a huge fireball raging on a US-linked oil tanker after it was reportedly struck by a torpedo in the Gulf of Oman today.
The Front Altair was one of two ships - along with the Kokuka Courageous - which were forced to evacuate this morning in the troubled region near Iran.
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A huge fire rages on board the Front Altair after it was reportedly hit by a torpedo in the Gulf of Oman
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The tanker was one of two ships attacked today sparking an evacuation of all crew members
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An aerial picture showing the huge blaze raging on the oil tanker after the attack this morningCredit: AP:Associated Press
The Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous is believed to have been targeted by a magnetic mine causing a series of massive explosions onboard.
All 44 sailors on the two ships have been rescued after sending out distress signals picked up by the US Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet, it has been reported.
Norwegian shipping firm Frontline which owns the Altair has denied Iranian reports that the tanker has sunk.
The ship was built in 2016 and is flagged to the Marshall Islands - a US associated state in the Pacific Ocean.
Chartered by Taiwan's state oil refiner CPC Corp, the huge vessel set sail from the UAE port of Ruwais on Tuesday and was due to arrive in Kaohsiung on June 30.
Speaking to Reuters, the CEO of CPC's petrochemical division Wu I-Fang said the tanker was "suspected of being hit by a torpedo."
He said it was carrying 75,000 tonnes of naphtha, a petrochemical feedstock, which trade sources estimate to be worth more than $30 million.
'TORPEDO ATTACK'
An Emirati official said the tanker had burst into flames.
This comes as tensions in the Persian Gulf between the United States and Iran are threatening to reach boiling point.
In recent weeks, Washington has sent a number of battle ships to the region in response to what is says are Iranian threats against American interests and its allies in the region.
The Kokuka Courageous had set sail from Al Jubail in Saudi Arabia on June 10 and was due to reach Singapore by June 22.
Oil prices soared by 3.5 percent following news of the explosions, according to reports.
TENSIONS RISING
Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif branded the explosions as "suspicious" calling them "reported attacks on Japan-related oil tankers."
He said the incident had happened as Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei was meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who is a close American ally.
The US Navy's 5th Fleet said it is aware of a "reported attack" in the area and is investigating.
A statement said: "US naval forces in the region received two separate distress calls at 6.12 am local time and a second one at 7.00 am.
"US Navy ships are in the area and are rendering assistance."
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which is run by the British Navy, urged "extreme caution" and said it was investigating the incident.
“We are deeply concerned by reports of explosions and fires on vessels in the Gulf of Oman. We are in contact with local authorities and partners in the region.”
Authorities do not believe that any British nationals were on the two ships.
A UK Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We are deeply concerned by reports of explosions and fires on vessels in the Gulf of Oman. We are in contact with local authorities and partners in the region.”
This comes after the US claimed Iran used explosives to blow huge holes in four ships - including two Saudi oil tankers - anchored in the Persian Gulf last month.
May 5: USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group and a bomber task force is deployed in Middle East in response to 'a number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings' by Iran.
May 8: Iran vows to enrich its uranium stockpile if world powers fail to negotiate new terms for its nuclear deal. The US responds by imposing sanctions on Iran's metals industry.
May 10: The US says it will move a Patriot missile battery into the Middle East to counter threats from Iran.
May 24: President Trump says the US will bolster its military presence in the Middle East with an additional 1,500 troops.
May 12: The UAE says four commercial ships off its eastern coast "were subjected to sabotage operations," just hours after Iranian and Lebanese media outlets air false reports of explosions at a nearby Emirati port.
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The incident reportedly happened in the Gulf of Oman this morning
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Huge plumes of thick black smoke billow from the massive tanker in the Gulf of Oman following a suspected torpedo attackCredit: AP:Associated Press
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One of the tankers on fire in the Gulf of Oman following the suspected torpedo attackCredit: AFP or licensors
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All the crew members of Front Altair have been rescued, a senior company official said
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An unverified picture which claims to show one of the tankers in the Gulf of Oman on fire
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The Front Altair, from the US-linked Marshall Islands, was one of the ships reportedly attacked today near IranCredit: Shipspotting.com
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The second tanker caught in the reported crossfire was the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous
They were targeted near the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates - with one of the tankers due to be loaded with Saudi crude oil bound for the US.
A Washington-based official told the Associated Press that an American military team's initial assessment indicated Iran or its allies used explosives to blow holes in the ships.
The general-secretary of the Gulf Cooperation Council described the sabotage as a "serious escalation" in an overnight statement.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman called the incidents near the coast of Fujairah on May 12 "worrisome and dreadful" and asked for an investigation into the matter.
US and Iran - a troubled history
Before the 1979 Iranian revolution, Iran was one of America's biggest allies in the Middle East and was led by the US-backed Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.
However, since the seismic revolt, Iran has been led by murderous Islamic fundamentalists and tensions with Washington have remained ever since.
On November 4, 1979, the Iranian regime took 52 US diplomats hostage in response to President Carter’s administration allowing Iran’s deposed former leader into America.
The hostage crisis lasted for 444 days and also included a failed rescue mission which cost the lives of eight US soldiers.
In April 1980, the US ended diplomatic relations with Iran – a break which lasted for more than 30 years.
In April 1983, Washington blamed the Iranian-funded terror group Hezbollah for carrying out a bombing attack on the American embassy in Beirut, Lebanon.
The assault, carried out amid a brutal civil war in Lebanon, killed 17 Americans.
In November of that year, two truck bombs in Beruit killed 241 US peace keepers. The US again blamed Hezbollah for the incident.
The Clinton White House, in 1995, placed a total embargo on Iran meaning US companies could not trade with the country.
And in 2002, George W Bush included the Islamic Republic in his famous “Axis of evil” speech along with North Korea and Iraq.
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The latest explosions in the region come after four ships were attacked with explosives last month in the Persian GulfCredit: Reuters
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The United States deployed an additional warship to the GulfCredit: AFP
What is the Iran nuclear deal?
The deal is an agreement between the Islamic Republic and a group of world powers aimed at scrapping the Middle Eastern country's nuclear weapons programme.
It saw Iran agree to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium by 98 per cent.
According to the deal, Iran would receive relief from the US, the European Union and the United Nations Security Council on all nuclear-related economic sanctions.
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The agreement was reached on July 14, 2015, and was signed by world powers in Vienna, Austria.
However, on May 8, 2018, President Trump announced the US would withdraw from the agreement - which he has repeatedly called "insane" and ridiculous".
America's withdrawal from the deal mean crippling economic sanctions will once again be placed on Iran - further heightening tensions between the two countries.
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