Kamal Ghorui
Iran struck a fully loaded crude oil tanker anchored off Dubai’s port on Monday, setting it on fire and damaging its hull, Kuwait’s state news agency reported, citing Kuwait Petroleum Corp. The company also warned of a possible oil spill. The incident appears to be the latest in a series of attacks on commercial shipping in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, involving missiles and explosive aerial and maritime drones, following US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.“The Kuwaiti giant crude oil tanker was subjected to a direct and malicious Iranian attack while in the anchorage area of Dubai Port in the UAE,” news agency KUNA reported, citing Kuwait’s state-owned oil company.Dubai authorities said they were dealing with a drone strike targeting the oil tanker in local waters, with maritime firefighting crews working to contain the blaze. No casualties have been reported, and all 24 crew members are safe, officials said, according to Reuters.Iran has made no comments on the strike yet.Two unidentified projectiles landed in the water near the container ship about 22 nautical miles (40.7 km) northeast of Ras Tanura at 1352 GMT, Reuters reported citing a representative of the Liberia-flagged Express Rome.The incidents occurred roughly an hour apart, and all crew members were safe, according to British maritime risk-management firm Vanguard.Vanguard added that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had previously claimed responsibility for an attack on the Express Rome on March 11.
