The US Navy’s fifth fleet says it is assisting two damaged oil tankers reportedly hit by explosions off the coast of the United Arab Emirates near the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Reports of the explosions in the Gulf of Oman originally came from the same Hezbollah-linked news agencies in Lebanon that correctly reported attacks on four tankers docked off the coast of the UAE last month.
The tankers in distress were the Marshal Islands-flagged Front Altair and the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous. Managers for the Panama shipping firm said 21 crew members had been evacuated, and the cargo of methanol was intact.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which is part of the Royal Navy, had earlier said that it was aware of an incident. The UK and its partners are currently investigating, the group said.
