According to Iranian state media, Iran has detained a tanker carrying Iraqi crude that was headed for Turkey as payback for the US seizing the same ship and her cargo last year. This action is expected to escalate tensions in the region.
According to a court order, “the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Navy seized an American oil tanker in the waters of the Gulf of Oman,” the official IRNA news agency reported.
“After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran’s Navy”, the navy claimed, as cited by the Iranian news outlet Fars.
The Houthis of Yemen, who have ties to Iran, have been attacking ships in the Red Sea for weeks prior to the seizure.
