The circumstances of what the British navy reported as a "potential hijack" of a ship off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in the Gulf of Oman on Tuesday remain unclear as of Wednesday morning.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations initially warned ships Tuesday that "an incident is currently underway" off the coast of Fujairah. Hours later, the authorities said the incident was a "potential hijack," but provided no further details.

Shipping authority Lloyd's List and maritime intelligence firm Dryad Global both identified the vessel involved in the incident as Panama-flagged asphalt tanker Asphalt Princess. The vessel's owner, listed as Emirati free zone-based Glory International, could not immediately be reached for comment late Tuesday.

The Times of London also reported that the Asphalt Princess had been hijacked, citing British sources as saying they were "working on the assumption Iranian military or proxies boarded the vessel."

Satellite-tracking data for the vessel showed it slowly heading toward Iranian waters off the port of Jask early Wednesday, according to MarineTraffic.com.

The US military's 5th Fleet and the British Defense Ministry also did not immediately return calls for comment. The Emirati government did not immediately acknowledge the incident.

Earlier, at least four oil tankers announced around the same time via their Automatic Identification System trackers that they were "not under command," according to MarineTraffic.com. That typically means a vessel has lost power and can no longer steer.

"At the same time, if they are in the same vicinity and in the same place, then very rarely that happens," said Ranjith Raja, an oil and shipping expert with data firm Refintiv. "Not all the vessels would lose their engines or their capability to steer at the same time."

Sources in Abu Dhabi reported Tuesday that Israel's defense establishment had updated them on the incident and said that Israel was not involved. Sources in the United Arab Emirates reported that one of the ships affected was the Singapore-flagged Golden Brilliant, which had run into a mine or some kind of underwater weapon and sustained serious damage.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

One of the vessels later began moving.

Nour News, affiliated with Iran's top national security body, quoted a senior navy official as saying "the movement of commercial vessels is quite normal and no official naval sources or countries in the Persian Gulf have reported any incidents."

Iran's foreign ministry said the reports of maritime incidents were "suspicious" and warned against any effort to create a "false atmosphere" against Tehran.

The Al-Arabiyye network reported that Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps had denied any involvement in the incident.

An Oman Royal Air Force Airbus C-295MPA, a maritime patrol aircraft, flew in circles for hours over the waters, according to data from FlightRadar24.com.

Apparently responding to the incident, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh called the recent maritime attacks in the Persian Gulf "completely suspicious." He denied that Iran was involved.

"Iran's naval forces are ready for help and rescue in the region," Khatibzadeh said.

Meanwhile on Tuesday, the NATO military alliance and the European Union joined a growing chorus of international condemnation of Iran's alleged attack on the Mercer Street merchant ship in the Arabian Sea last week and urged Tehran to respect its international obligations.

Last Thursday's drone strike killed a British national and a Romanian. It was the first known fatal strike on commercial shipping in the region after years of tensions over the tattered nuclear deal between western nations and Iran.

NATO spokesman Dylan White said the 30-nation alliance joins members the US, UK and Romania "in strongly condemning the recent fatal attack on the MV Mercer Street off the coast of Oman, and express our condolences to Romania and the United Kingdom for the losses they have suffered."

"Freedom of navigation is vital for all NATO allies, and must be upheld in accordance with international law," White said. "Allies remain concerned by Iran's destabilizing actions in the region, and call on Tehran to respect its international obligations."

The EU, meanwhile, deplored the attack, expressed its condolences for the victims and called for a thorough independent investigation.

"Such acts contrary to the security and freedom of navigation in the region are unacceptable," European Commission spokeswoman Nabila Massrali said. "All parties concerned must avoid all actions that could undermine peace and regional stability."

The post Regional tensions rise as Iran rebuffs reports of maritime incidents as 'suspicious' appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

An oil tanker was attacked off the Syrian coast in a suspected drone attack on Saturday, said Syria's oil ministry, adding that a blaze aboard the ship had been extinguished.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a United Kingdom-based war monitor group, identified the fuel tanker as Iranian and said it was hit in an apparent attack.

Syria's SANA state media said the tanker had been docked outside the Baniyas port when it was allegedly hit.

Baniyas is a coastal city located on Syria's Mediterranean shoreline, roughly half the distance between Tartus and  Latakia. Sitting next to it is an oil refinery – one of the largest in the country.

The Syrian oil ministry said the suspected drone attack came from Lebanese territorial waters.

Iranian journalist Hossein Dalirian, who is close to the ayatollah regime in Tehran, wrote on Twitter that two missiles fired from a drone hit the tanker and that Iran would retaliate for the attack soon.

Iran's al-Alam TV said the tanker was one of three Iranian oil tankers that had recently arrived at the Syrian oil terminal, while the semi-official news agency Tasnim denied it was Iranian.

Syria's oil resources are mostly outside of government-controlled areas but two of its refineries are operational. This makes Damascus reliant on Iran for fuel. But US Treasury sanctions have targeted a network that spanned Syria, Iran and Russia responsible for shipping oil to the Syrian government.

The report comes as frictions between Israel and Iran are spilling out into the maritime sphere, with a series of attacks recently hitting Israeli-owned vessels in the area.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Iranian oil tanker hit in alleged drone strike off Syrian coast appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said a day after two missiles struck the Iranian tanker Sabiti as it traveled through the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia that "vicious behavior in international waterways will not go without a response." He didn't elaborate.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

Shamkhani said an Iranian committee was able to glean some information about the attack from video images from the Sabiti.

Cabinet spokesman Ali Rabiei, meanwhile, said Iran was investigating the case but "avoiding hastiness."

The mysterious attack, which came amid months of heightened tensions at sea across the wider Middle East, damaged two storerooms aboard the tanker, Iranian officials said. Iran said the tanker will arrive at one of its ports in about 10 days.

Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, broke its silence on the incident, saying through its state-run news agency that authorities received an electronic message Friday from the captain of the Sabiti "that the front of the vessel has been broken, resulting in an oil spill in the sea from the cargo and tanks of the vessel."

It said the Sabiti continued moving and turned off its electronic tracker without offering more information.

"The kingdom affirms its commitment to the security and safety of maritime navigation, as well as international agreements and norms," the statement on the state-run Saudi Press Agency said.

Saudi Arabia said it would launch a pollution control response to the spilled crude oil from the Iranian tanker.

As Washington and Riyadh weigh a response to a drone-and-missile strike on the kingdom's oil industry that shook global energy markets, Iran said any attack by the US or Saudi Arabia will spark an "all-out war."

The attacks come after US President Donald Trump's made the decision to unilaterally withdraw from Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers and impose crushing sanctions targeting Iran's crude oil sales and shipments. Iranian officials warned for weeks that if they couldn't sell their oil, neither would anyone else in the region.

Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was scheduled to meet Iranian leaders during his Sunday visit to Tehran following a visit to Saudi Arabia.

In anticipation of Khan's anticipated mediation between the regional rivals, Iran's Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said Iran was ready to enter a dialogue with the Saudis "with or without a mediator" to prevent misunderstandings that could result in third parties or foreign countries exploiting the regional situation.

Mousavi said Iran has always been open to those countries that seek "a safe region through goodwill."

The post Iranian official says oil tanker attack won't go unpunished appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

There was no word from Saudi Arabia on the reported attack and Saudi officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

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 Jiddah.

All crew members of the tanker are safe and the situation of the vessel is stable, Iran's Nour news agency reported.

"None of the crew members were injured at the explosion ... the situation is under control," the news agency, close to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards Corps, reported.

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.

The reported attack comes after the US has alleged that in past months Iran attacked oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, something denied by Tehran.

Friday's incident could push tensions between Iran and the US even higher, more than a year after US 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.

The latest assault saw Saudi Arabia's vital oil industry come under a drone-and-cruise-missile attack, halving the kingdom's output. The US has blamed Iran for the attack, something denied by Tehran. Yemen's Houthi rebels, whom the kingdom is fighting in a yearslong war, claimed that assault, though analysts say the missiles used in the attack wouldn't have the range to reach the sites from Yemen.

The post Iran says oil tanker struck by rockets off Saudi Arabia appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Fallout from the Sept. 14 attacks is still reverberating as world leaders gather for their annual meeting at the UN General Assembly and international experts investigate, at Saudi Arabia's request, what happened and who was responsible.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Germany released a statement reaffirming their support for the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the US exited, but telling Iran to stop breaching it and saying "there is no other plausible explanation" than that "Iran bears responsibility for this attack."

They pledged to try to ease tensions in the Middle East and urged Iran to "refrain from choosing provocation and escalation."

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said late Sunday while flying to New York that the UK would consider taking part in a US-led military effort to bolster Saudi Arabia's defenses after the drone and cruise missile attacks on the world's largest oil processor and an oil field.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif denied any part in the attacks. He said Monday that Yemen's Houthi rebels, who claimed responsibility, "have every reason to retaliate" for the Saudi-led coalition's aerial attacks on their country.

He also stressed that on the eve of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's visit to the United Nations in New York City "it would be stupid for Iran to engage in such activity."

Zarif called it an attack "with high precision, low impact" and no casualties. In the refinery, there were facilities that would have taken the Saudis a year to repair, he said. "Why did they hit the lowest impact places?" Zarif asked, saying if Iran was responsible, the refinery would have been destroyed.

France has been trying to find a diplomatic solution to US-Iranian tensions, which soared after the Saudi attacks, and has carefully avoided assigning blame.

Earlier on his way to New York, French President Emmanuel Macron said he remained "cautious" about attributing responsibility for the attacks. There was no immediate explanation of why he later shifted positions and blamed Iran.

Macron said at a UN news conference not long before the statement was issued that he planned to meet separately with both Trump and Rouhani over the next day and would work to foster "the conditions for discussion" and not escalation.

Macron called the Sept. 14 strikes "a game-changer, clearly" but reiterated France's willingness to mediate.

Zarif, however, ruled out any Iran-US meeting. He said Iran had received no request from the US, "and we have made clear that a request alone will not do the job."

He said Trump "closed the door to negotiations" with the latest US sanctions, which labeled the country's central bank a "global terrorist" institution – a designation the Iranian minister said the US president and his successors may not be able to change.

"I know that President Trump did not want to do that. I know he must have been misinformed," Zarif said in a meeting with UN correspondents.

Zarif said he plans to meet Wednesday with ministers of all five countries remaining in the 2015 nuclear deal from which Trump withdrew, including Russia and China.

Johnson, the UK prime minister, said Britain still backs the existing nuclear agreement and wants Iran to stick to its terms but urged Trump to strike a new deal with Iran.

"Whatever your objections with the old nuclear deal with Iran, it's time now to move forward and do a new deal," he said.

When asked about Johnson's suggestion, Trump said he respects the British leader and believes the current agreement expires too soon.

The joint UK, France, Germany statement urges Iran to reverse its rollback on key provisions in the 2015 nuclear deal and calls for a new agreement.

"The time has come for Iran to accept negotiation on a long-term framework for its nuclear program as well as on issues related to regional security, including its missiles program and other means of delivery," the three countries said.

Shortly before leaving for the UN meetings Monday, Rouhani said on state television that his country will invite Persian Gulf nations to join an Iranian-led coalition "to guarantee the region's security."

Rouhani said the plan also encompasses economic cooperation and an initiative for "long term" peace. He planned on presenting details while at the United Nations.

Zarif said the new Hormuz Peace Initiative – with the acronym HOPE – would be formed under a UN umbrella with two underlying principles: non-aggression and non-interference. He said it would require a major shift from countries "buying" security from other nations or mercenaries and instead promote the notion that "you can gain security relying on your own people and working with your neighbors."

Johnson said he would meet Rouhani at this week's UN gathering. He said he wanted Britain to be "a bridge between our European friends and the Americans when it comes to the crisis in the Gulf."

Johnson stressed the need for a diplomatic response to the Gulf tensions but said Britain would consider any request for military help.

The Trump administration announced Friday that it would send additional US troops and missile defense equipment to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as part of a "defensive" deployment. Officials said the number of troops was likely to be in the hundreds.

"We will be following that very closely," Johnson said. "And clearly if we are asked, either by the Saudis or by the Americans, to have a role, then we will consider in what way we could be useful."

A UK official told The Associated Press that a claim of responsibility for the attacks by Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen was "implausible." He said remnants of Iran-made cruise missiles were found at the attack site, and "the sophistication points very, very firmly to Iranian involvement."

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence findings, did not say whether Britain believed the attack was launched from Iranian soil. Iran denies responsibility and has warned any retaliatory attack targeting it will result in an "all-out war."

Meanwhile on Monday, Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei suggested the release of a British-flagged oil tanker held by Tehran since July would be imminent, though he doesn't know when it will leave.

The Stena Impero has not turned on its satellite-tracking beacon in 58 days and there has not been any sign that it has left its position near the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard seized the vessel after authorities in Gibraltar seized an Iranian crude oil tanker. That ship has since left Gibraltar, leading to hopes the Stena Impero would be released.

The post UK, France Germany blame Iran for Saudi oil attacks appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The July 19 seizure of the ship, two weeks after Britain detained an Iranian tanker off Gibraltar, cranking up tensions in the region in the wake of attacks on other merchant vessels that Washington blamed on Tehran.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

Iran denied responsibility for those attacks, which took place along a vital international oil shipping route.

"The legal work and administrative procedures for the release of the English tanker have been completed but I have no information on the time of the release," said government spokesman Ali Rabiei, according to semi-official news agency ILNA.

The semi-official Fars news agency quoted Rabiei as saying: "The legal work for the oil tanker is over ... and the oil tanker can move, and the decisions indicate the end of the detention." He did not elaborate.

Relations between the United States, its allies and Iran have been gradually more strained since Washington withdrew last year from a global pact aimed at reining in Tehran's nuclear program and imposed sanctions on it aimed at shutting down Iranian oil exports.

The post Iran says legal steps to release captured UK oil tanker complete appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

"It was detained near Iran's Greater Tunb island in the Persian Gulf… the crew have been handed over to legal authorities in the southern Hormozgan province," ISNA said, without elaborating on the nationalities of the crewmen.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The reported seizure coincided with raised international tensions following a weekend attack on a major oil installation in Saudi Arabia, Tehran's longtime regional foe.

Responsibility for the strike was claimed by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement, while the United States has blamed Iran itself for the strike. Iran denies the accusation.

Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and the fall of its national currency, has been fighting rampant fuel smuggling by land to neighboring countries and by sea to Gulf Arab states.

Iran stepped up its fight against smuggling fuel earlier this month when its coast guards seized a vessel for smuggling fuel in the Gulf and detained its 12 Filipino crew members.

In July, Iran seized a British oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz for alleged maritime violations, two weeks after British forces detained an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar accused of taking oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

Iran's Adrian Darya 1, formerly Grace 1, was released last month. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Monday that the British-flagged Stena Impero oil tanker will be released soon.

The latest reported ship seizure by Iran follows a series of incidents involving shipping in and near the Gulf after US sanctions on Iranian oil exports took full effect in May.

The incidents coincided with stepped up attacks by the Houthis on targets in Saudi Arabia.

The post Gulf tensions continue to climb as Iran seizes another vessel appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

"The tanker has gone to its destination, the oil has been sold," spokesman Abbas Mousavi told the television station without disclosing whether the crude oil had been delivered.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

On Saturday, the Adrian Darya 1, which went dark off Syria earlier in the week, was photographed by satellite off the Syrian port of Tartus.

Maxar Technologies Inc., a US space technology company, supplied the images, which showed the tanker Adrian Darya 1 very close to Tartus on Friday, Sept. 6.

Ship-tracking data showed that the vessel appeared to have turned off its transponder in the Mediterranean west of Syria last Tuesday.

The vessel, formerly named Grace 1, was detained by British Royal Marine commandos off Gibraltar on July 4 as it was suspected to be en route to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

Gibraltar released the Iranian vessel on Aug. 15 after receiving formal written assurances from Tehran that the ship would not discharge its 2.1 million barrels of oil in Syria.

On Friday, the US Treasury Department blacklisted the tanker.

In a related development, Iranian state television reported Sunday that Iran might soon release a detained British tanker, pending the completion of legal proceedings.

"I hope the procedures will be completed soon and this tanker will be released," Mousavi told the station.

In July, Iran seized a British oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz for alleged marine violations, two weeks after British forces detained an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar accused of taking oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

The Iranian tanker was later released. Iran this week freed seven of the 23 crew members of the British-flagged tanker.

The post Iran claims it sold the oil carried by blacklisted tanker appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

It said the tugboat was carrying nearly 284,000 liters (75,000 gallons) of diesel. The report did not say what national flag the vessel was flying.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel due to heavy state subsidies, has been fighting rampant fuel smuggling overland to neighboring countries and by sea to Gulf Arab states. It has frequently seized boats that it says are being used for smuggling fuel in the Gulf.

The incidents come at a time of increased tensions between Iran and the West in the Gulf following the United States' exit from the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.

While Iranian media reports say that an estimated 10 million liters (around 2,600,000 gallons) of fuel are smuggled per day, Tehran has been promoting legal gasoline exports through its energy exchange.

Gasoline sales hit a record high of $72 million last week on the Iran Energy Exchange for exports to neighboring countries, according to state TV.

The stand-off between Iran and the United States triggered by Washington's withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran in May last year has stirred fears of a Gulf war with global repercussions.

In July, Iran seized a British oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz for alleged maritime violations, two weeks after British forces detained an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar accused of taking oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

The Iranian tanker was later released and was last spotted off the coast of Syria. This week, Iran freed seven of the 23 crew members of the British-flagged oil tanker.

The post Iran seizes ship with Filipino crew for alleged fuel smuggling in Gulf appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The tanker, which is loaded with Iranian crude oil, appears to have turned off its transponder in the Mediterranean, west of Syria.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The vessel, formerly named Grace 1, was detained by British Royal Marine commandos off the coast of Gibraltar on July 4 as it was suspected to be en route to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

Gibraltar released the Iranian vessel on Aug. 15 after receiving formal written assurances from Tehran that the ship would not discharge its 2.1 million barrels of oil in Syria.

"We do not talk about plans, but currently I have no plan right now sitting on my desk to do such a thing," Esper told reporters in London when asked if there was any plan to seize the ship.

Washington has warned any state against assisting the ship, saying it would consider that support for a terrorist organization, namely, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

US officials told Reuters that taking any military action like boarding the vessel was not being seriously considered by the United States as it would likely lead to an escalation that could increase tensions.

Esper said he was in favor of efforts by France and other countries to get Iran to hold talks.

"My personal view, but I'm not the lead for this, it's the State Department, is if the French and others can get the Iranians to come to the table to talk, that would be a good thing," he said.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday left the door open to a possible meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the upcoming UN General Assembly in New York.

The United States has been pressing Iran with sanctions since last year, when Washington abandoned the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, often referred to as the Iran nuclear deal.

While European countries, including France, have been trying to push Iran to remain in compliance with the deal, offering proposals such as a $15 billion credit line for Iran to do so, Trump administration officials said on Wednesday they were skeptical of such maneuvers.

The post Pentagon chief says he currently has no plans to seize Iranian tanker Adrian Darya 1 appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.