A Panamanian-flagged oil tanker last seen near the Strait of Hormuz may have been seized by Iranian naval forces.
The MT Riah went missing after entering Iranian waters over the weekend, according to ship tracking data. U.S. intelligence officials believe it may have been forced into Iranian territory by members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, according to CNN. Some reports claim the Riah belonged to the United Arab Emirates, but a UAE official denied that claim on Monday.
“The tanker in question is neither owned nor operated by the UAE,” the official said in a statement provided to Emirates News Agency. “It does not carry Emirati personnel, and did not emit a distress call.”
The Riah went missing near Qeshm Island, which is known to be the home of an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval base.
The tanker’s disappearance raised concerns that Iran seized the vessel in retaliation for the seizure of its own oil tanker earlier this month. British Royal Marines impounded the Grace 1 on July 5 because of suspicions that it was transporting oil to Syria, a key Iranian ally, in a direct violation of European Union and U.S. sanctions.
Here’s the last known location of the UAE RIAH #tanker vanished in #Iran waters. UAE believes that the #IRGC forced it into Iran waters, and #USA says no contact with crew has been made so far. pic.twitter.com/6DF9TU6Vi6
— intel.wav (@inteldotwav) July 15, 2019
“These days we witnessed a threatening act from the government of England in the Strait of Gibraltar against a tanker from the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Iranian deputy defense minister Amir Hatami at the time. “This is an incorrect and wrong action, an action similar to maritime robbery … certainly these kind of robberies will not be tolerated.”
A Revolutionary Guard commander threatened to seize a British ship in response, and the Iranian Parliament said last week that it would consider charging foreign vessels a toll for “protection” as they cross the Strait of Hormuz. Former U.S. Navy officer Thomas Callender told the Washington Examiner that such a move would be nothing more than “a form of extortion.”
The British Navy plans to send the HMS Kent warship and RFA Wave Knight tanker to the Persian Gulf to join its ongoing Operation Kipion security mission in September. The Kent will be the third warship sent to the region, after the HMS Duncan was sent to join the HMS Montrose last week. Ships participating in the Kipion mission have already escorted at least two ships through the strait since Iran made the threat.
The Strait of Hormuz is considered the most important oil transit point in the world, with as many as 18.5 million barrels of oil passing through it each day.
At least six vessels have been attacked in the strait since a rise in tensions between the U.S. and Iran began in May. In response, the U.S. and its allies have established a protection mission called Operation Sentinel.
