An oil tanker was seized by the Iranian navy in the waters between Iran and Oman on Thursday, according to state media.
Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA published a brief story confirming the seizure by the navy but did not identify the vessel.
Earlier Thursday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, or UKMTO, said it had received a report of several gunmen boarding a ship in the Gulf of Oman.
Four to five “unauthorized” individuals who were “armed” and “wearing military style black uniforms with black masks” reportedly boarded the vessel early Thursday in an area some 50 nautical miles east of Sohar, a port city on Oman’s northern coast, according to a notice from the UKMTO, which is part of Britain’s Royal Navy and provides warnings to sailors in the Middle East.
It was owned by a Greek company. Iran never owned this boat. This is just tit-for-tat bs to be obnoxious.
Iran did hire this boat to evade sanctions. Got caught. The operator pled guilty and paid a fine. The oil was seized. But the boat was given back to the Greek owners.
Stealing Iraqi oil sold to Turkey because it’s on the same boat seems like the actions of a petulant child. But that said it’s all Iran can do. They know going against the US directly will end poorly no matter how much they want to posture. Which is why they’re paying the Houthis to be their cannon fodder.
Did going against the US end terribly for Afghanistan? The US is welcome to try spending 4 trillion dollars and 20 years fighting Iran but if it expects a different outcome than Vietnam or Afghanistan or Iraq then you aren’t the only one who is misled.
As someone from the region (Saudi Arabia) I want the US to be baited into another decades-long losing war. I am just surprised that the US public wants the same given how recent losing in Afghanistan and Iraq is.
Of course I see Iran’s reclamation of its tanker as justified and US sanctions as unjustified but that’s beyond the point.
