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Iranian forces seized an oil tanker off the coast of Oman as the threat to shipping in the Middle East spilled into one of the world’s most important oil export routes.
With western countries signalling their likely retaliation to maritime assaults by Iranian-backed Houthi forces in the Red Sea, the capture of the tanker on Thursday raised fears that Tehran could step up its own attacks.
“Seizing tankers is a go-to Iranian move to demonstrate their capabilities and to create problems,” said Tobias Borck at the Royal United Services Institute think-tank in London.
He added that Thursday’s development showed that the Houthi campaign was part of a bigger regional threat that could escalate despite efforts to contain a crisis sparked by the Israel-Gaza war.
Rishi Sunak, UK prime minister, was planning a conference call on Thursday evening with his cabinet to discuss the situation in the Red Sea and possible British participation in a US-led military operation, according to people briefed on the matter.
UK defence secretary Grant Shapps warned this week that the UK and regional powers were “all agreed” that the Houthi attacks “cannot continue”, adding: “Watch this space.”
UK authorities said the oil tanker — later identified by its owners as the 1mn barrel capacity St Nikolas — had been boarded early on Thursday morning by four to five armed individuals in “military-style black uniforms”.
Satellite tracking information indicated the vessel was diverted towards Iran before contact was lost.
Iranian state-backed media later released a photo of armed forces abseiling from a helicopter on to a tanker’s deck.
The Tasnim News Agency, an outlet affiliated to the Revolutionary Guards, said the country’s naval forces had acted on court orders in retaliation to “oil theft by the US regime”.
The US seized a cargo of Iranian oil last year from the same tanker, then known as the Suez Rajan, for breaching Washington’s sanctions against Iran.
The tanker’s owner, Athens-based Empire Navigation, said in October it had settled the dispute with the US Department of Justice.
Thursday’s seizure took place south of the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil chokepoint, which lies on the other side of the Arabian peninsula from the Red Sea, where the Houthis have launched more than 25 recent attacks.
Oil prices rose on Thursday, with Brent crude up almost 2 per cent on the day at $78 a barrel.
Iranian forces have previously seized tankers during periods of heightened tension with the US and other western states. Tehran has said it has no desire to see the conflict between Israel and Hamas escalate into a broader war.
Iran is the chief backer of forces opposed to Israel that it has dubbed the “axis of resistance”, which includes the Houthis, Hizbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, as well as militant groups in Syria and Iraq.
The capture of the tanker was designed to make the US and its allies think twice about any retaliatory military action against the Houthis, analysts said.
Empire Navigation said the vessel, which had a crew of 18 Filipinos and one Greek national, was sailing from Iraq to Turkey with a full cargo belonging to Tüpraş, a Turkish oil group. The company said late on Thursday that it had received no communication from the vessel since it was boarded.
The ship is a “Suezmax” tanker, the largest kind that can use the Suez Canal fully laden.
The Houthis, who control north Yemen including the capital Sana’a, launched their biggest attack to date this week, targeting western warships with drones and missiles.
US President Joe Biden’s administration has been hesitant to respond aggressively to the attacks, which have halted most container shipping in the Red Sea.
Oil prices, which could be pushed upwards by military action, are a big concern ahead of the presidential election in November.
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council demanded an end to attacks on ships in the Red Sea and called on the Houthis to release the Galaxy Leader, a vehicle-carrying vessel they seized and diverted in November, and its crew.
Additional reporting by Chris Cook in London
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