Iran said on Friday it redirected a US-sanctioned oil tanker carrying Iranian oil back to its shores, though it was unclear from its statement why it would have returned it. ‘The Islamic Republic of Iran’s navy, through a specially planned operation in the Sea of Oman, seized the offending tanker Ocean Koi,’ the army said in a statement, adding that the oil belonged to the ‘Islamic republic’. It said the ship was redirected to Iran’s southern shores after it sought ‘to damage and disrupt Iran’s oil exports,’ without elaborating.
It comes after US and Iranian forces clashed in the Gulf and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed attack, in a flare-up that threatened to torpedo the ceasefire. The escalation came as Washington awaited Tehran’s response to a US proposal to end the war, which began on February 28 when the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran. US President Donald Trump said on Thursday three US Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for around a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows that Iran has all but closed since the conflict began.
