Iran seizes oil tanker with links to US in Gulf of Oman

Iran seizes oil tanker with links to US in Gulf of Oman

The Iranian navy has seized a US-linked oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman as part of a long-running dispute with the US over an American court order a year ago that seized Iranian oil on the tanker and unloaded the cargo in Texas.

Official Iranian news agencies said on Wednesday that the tanker had been taken on the authority of an Iranian court order, but the news will add to the growing tensions about freedom of navigation in the region as a result of repeated Houthi rebel attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.

The Houthis say their attacks are designed to disrupt the Israeli economy and the naval forces protecting Israel, primarily the US’s, as a result of the war in Gaza.

A punitive joint US-UK attack on Houthi military installations in Yemen, including the port of Hodeidah, seems imminent after Houthi leaders vowed on Thursday to defy a UN security resolution passed the previous day demanding an end to the attacks on commercial shipping.

The vessel, which was carrying Iraqi oil bound for Turkey, changed course after the boarding and headed in the direction of Bandar-e-Jask in Iran.

“The navy of the Islamic Republic of Iran seized an American oil tanker in the waters of the Gulf of Oman in accordance with a court order,” the official IRNA news agency said. The seizure had been in retaliation for “violation committed by the Suez Rajan ship … and the theft of Iranian oil by the United States,” it added. Iran has responded with tit-for-tat measures in the past after seizures of Iranian oil shipments.

Iran seizes oil tanker involved in U.S.-Iran dispute in Gulf of Oman -state media

Jana Choukeir, Ahmed Elimam and Robert Harvey

Iran seized a tanker with Iraqi crude destined for Turkey on Thursday in retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its oil by the United States, Iranian state media reported, a move likely to stoke regional tensions.

The seizure of the Marshall Islands-flagged St Nikolas coincides with weeks of attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militias targeting Red Sea shipping routes.

"After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran's Navy this morning with a judicial order ... it is en route to Iranian ports," the semi-official Fars news agency reported, citing a statement by the Navy.

The St Nikolas, was seized by the United States last year in a sanctions enforcement operation when it sailed under a different name, Suez Rajan. Following the move, Iran warned the U.S. that it would "not go unanswered".

The St Nikolas was boarded by armed intruders as it sailed close to the Omani city of Sohar, according to British maritime security firm Ambrey, and its AIS tracking system was turned off as it headed in the direction of the Iranian port of Bandar-e-Jask.

"Communication with the oil tanker, St Nikolas, under Marshall Islands flag and owned by the Greek shipowner Empire Navigation has been cut off around 06:30 on Jan. 11 in the waters of Oman," Turkish oil refiner Tupras told Reuters in an emailed statement, confirming it had bought the cargo from Iraqi state marketer SOMO.

The ship loaded around 145,000 metric tonnes of oil in the Iraqi port of Basra and was heading to Aliaga in western Turkey via the Suez Canal, Empire Navigation told Reuters, adding that it had lost contact with the vessel.

The vessel is manned by a crew of 19 including 18 Filipino nationals and one Greek national, Empire Navigation said.