An LNG vessel Al Rekayyat belonging to was hit in the early on Tuesday, officials said on grounds of anonymity. The vessel, owned by Qatar’s state-owned shipping company Nakilat, appeared to be traveling without its transponders on, ship-tracking data show.
In a separate incident, two vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz were damaged after Iranian Revolutionary Guards fired missiles. The UK Maritime Trade Operations said that a tanker was traveling southbound near Nima, Oman, when it was hit on its port side, triggering a fire. Adding that there were no casualties or environmental damage, the agency has advised vessels to exercise caution while transiting the area.
According to a report, citing two US officials, Iran military fired the missiles at the commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday night. The report added that another commercial oil ship was also struck by an Iranian missile.
The attacks come one week after the agreement between United States and Iran to halt attacks in the Strait of Hormuz expired. The temporary pause coincided with the six-day state funeral ceremonies for their slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose body was moved from Tehran to the holy city of Qom on Monday, after a massive funeral procession that drew millions of mourners.
According to the report, Washington is now likely to consider a retaliatory strike against Iranian targets. The indirect talks held between Washington and Tehran in Doha last week ended without significant progress on the future of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The incident came amid escalating diplomatic tensions, with Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei criticising Germany over Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul’s remarks accusing Tehran of unlawfully laying mines in international shipping lanes and saying Iran should bear the cost of clearing them.