Two people have reportedly been killed after a Saudi oil tanker was attacked in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, as the ongoing US-Iran conflict continues to disrupt shipping and heighten tensions around a crucial global oil route.
A file photo of a vessel around the Strait of Hormuz
Two Filipino sailors were killed when a Saudi oil tanker was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week, Saudi Arabia’s national shipping company said Wednesday.
A Greek security firm earlier said “unknown projectiles” hit the ship on Monday. Fresh violence has flared between the US and Iran this week.
“Bahri confirms that its vessel SIDR was involved in a security incident while transiting the Strait of Hormuz” late on Monday, the carrier said on X, confirming “the loss of its two Filipino seafarers”.
After six months of war, the foes remain at an impasse, with Iran disrupting traffic in the strategic Strait of Hormuz with its blockade and the US persisting with a counter-blockade of Iranian ports.
Overnight Monday to Tuesday, unidentified projectiles struck two oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, Greek maritime risk management firm Marisks had said.
Both vessels loaded two million barrels of crude at Juaymah on Saudi Arabia’s east coast last week, according to Kpler data.
On Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said two oil tankers caught fire after striking mines while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States renewed its attacks on Iran this week, with Tehran hitting back in the Gulf, mainly targeting US assets.
Iran says it wants to charge service fees and has attacked ships it accuses of attempting to circumvent its preferred route through the waterway.
Attacks on commercial ships in the strait, which was free to transit before the war, previously led to the collapse of an April ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
AFP
