New Delhi: 24 Indian crew members were aboard a US-bound oil tanker that Iranian commandos had seized, the vessel’s operator informed AFP on Friday. They added that they were seeking to obtain their release. Iranian state media aired footage of navy commandos landing on the deck of the Advantage Sweet after they reportedly collided with one of its vessels off the coast of Oman on Thursday, according to Tehran.
Crew members of vessels taken in such situations are not in danger
Iran’s navy was escorting the Marshall Islands-flagged ship into port as a result of a “international disagreement,” according to the operator. Similar incidents demonstrate that crew members of vessels taken in such situations are not in danger, the company added, noting that it was ‘in close contact with all relevant authorities to secure the release of the crew and vessel.’ Iran claimed that the tanker had collided with one of their vessels, killing two Iranian crew members and leaving a number of others injured.
The immediate release of the ship was sought by the US Navy
The ship was seized, according to Iran, after attempts were made to contact it and request that it stop. The immediate release of the ship was sought by the US Navy in response to Iran’s “continued harassment” in Gulf seas. According to a representative for Advantage Tankers, the vessel had taken oil from Kuwait and was chartered by Chevron Corp. According to the website used to track marine traffic, it was headed for Houston, Texas. Only a few days prior to the most recent seizure, Western governments tightened their sanctions against Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. The seizure on Thursday was the most recent incident in the Gulf’s delicate waters, which transport approximately a third of the world’s seaborne oil. Since the US withdrew from the historic nuclear deal that Iran reached with world powers in 2018 and reinstituted crippling sanctions, such incidents have increased in frequency. Strenuous attempts to salvage the agreement have failed.
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