Iran seizes oil tanker, second in a week: US Navy

The US Navy said on Wednesday (May 3) that Iran has seized a second oil tanker in a week in Gulf waters. This is being seen as the latest escalation in a series of seizures/attacks on commercial vessels in these waters since 2019.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) seized the Panama-flagged oil tanker Niovi. The Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet of the US Navy said that the seizure took place at 6:20 am (0220 GMT) while the oil tanker was passing through the narrow Strait of Hormuz. Iranian judiciary's Mizan news agency quoted Tehran's prosecutor as saying that the oil tanker was seized on a judicial order following a complaint by a plaintiff. There were no further details.

The latest incident comes just days after Iran seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker called the Advantage Sweet. The tanker was seized in the Gulf of Oman. The Marshall Islands flag registry said on Tuesday that the tanker was being held by Iranian authorities in Bandar Abbas.

Maritime security firm Ambrey has said it believed the Advantage Sweet's seizure by Iran was in response to a recent seizure via a court order by the United States of an oil cargo aboard the Marshall Islands tanker Suez Rajan.

The Niovi oil tanker, which was seized on Wednesday, had been travelling from Dubai towards Fujairah port in UAE when it was forced by Iran to change course towards the territorial waters of the country, said US Navy.

The Niovi last reported its position at 0231 GMT on Wednesday off the coast of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz with Fujairah as its destination, Refinitiv ship tracking data showed.

According to the International Maritime Organization shipping database, Niovi's owner is Grand Financing Co, and the ship is managed by Greece-based Smart Tankers.

Reuters said Smart Tankers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Strait of Hormuz sees the passage of about a fifth of the world's crude oil and oil products. It is a narrow choke point between Iran and Oman.

"Heightened military activity and geopolitical tensions in these regions continue to pose serious threats to commercial vessels," the Marshall Islands flag registry said in an advisory on Tuesday.

"Associated with these threats is the potential for miscalculation or misidentification, which could lead to aggressive actions."

Since 2019, there have been a series of attacks on shipping in the strategic Gulf waters at atime of tension between the United States and Iran.

Indirect talks between Tehran and Washington to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear pact with world powers have stalled since September over a range of issues, including the Islamic Republic's violent crackdown on popular protests, Tehran's sale of drones to Russia and acceleration of its nuclear program.

(With inputs from agencies)

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