Wednesday November 10, 2021
Incident in the Gulf of Oman
Iran releases pinned tankers again
Iranian naval forces seize a Vietnamese oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman. The Revolutionary Guards justify the move with a threatened deployment of the US military. After the cargo has been unloaded, the tanker can now continue its journey.
Iran has released a recently seized Vietnamese oil tanker. The ship “MV Sothys” was allowed to sail on court order “after the oil belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran was unloaded in Bandar Abbas,” the Iranian Revolutionary Guard official website said, Sepah News. The oil tanker sailing under the Vietnamese flag was arrested in the Gulf of Oman at the end of October.
The Revolutionary Guards said they had thwarted an attempt by the US Navy to stop the tanker with Iranian oil on board. The US Department of Defense rejected this representation. Iran confiscated the tanker, while the US Navy merely observed the incident without intervening, it said.
Crew are doing well
The head of the Navy of the Revolutionary Guard, Rear Admiral Aliresa Tangsiri, called the US government’s version on Wednesday a “big lie”. The Vietnamese authorities said they were working “closely” with Iran to investigate the seizure. The 26 crew members were treated well and are doing well.
The Tanker Trackers website also reported the ship’s departure. According to the website, there was $ 50 million worth of oil on board.
In the Gulf region, which is important for the transport of oil deliveries, there have recently been repeated attacks on merchant ships. In July, the oil tanker “MT Mercer Street” operated by an Israeli company was attacked off the coast of Oman. Two crew members were killed in the process. According to the US Army, the attack was carried out with Iranian drones. Tehran denied the allegations.