Oman evacuates 25 crew after tanker targeted and catches fire off its coast

Oman's Royal Navy evacuated 25 crew members from a Panama-flagged vessel after it was targeted and caught fire near the coast of Musandam on Friday, the country's Maritime Security Centre said.

The ship, named RITI, was about 1.6 nautical miles from the coast when the incident took place. The centre said the navy "carried out an evacuation operation for 25 crew members of the merchant ship RITI, flying the Panamanian flag, after it was targeted, which led to a fire breaking out on board".

The crew members were given medical care after the rescue. The ship-tracking website Marine Traffic identified RITI as a crude oil tanker.

Iran reports incidents involving oil tankers

The incident comes as tensions continue in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has restricted ship movement through the waterway since the war began on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

The strait is a key route for global oil supplies, carrying around one-fifth of the world's oil consumption.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said three oil tankers had been stopped after separate incidents in the area. It said two vessels had tried to use a route that Tehran considers unauthorised.

"Two offending oil tankers, one in the eastern part and the other in the western part of the Strait of Hormuz, which were attempting to pass through the unauthorised route, encountered incidents and were brought to a halt in the waters south of the strait," the IRGC said.

The Guards accused the tankers of switching off their navigation systems and trying to leave with support from the US military.

Iran has asked ships to use a route approved by its armed forces and coordinate their passage. It considers the southern route closer to Oman's coast unauthorised.

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Iran claims supertanker hit a mine

The IRGC said the tankers had ignored several radio warnings before the incidents. It did not explain what happened to the first two vessels.

In a separate statement, the Guards said a supertanker carrying two million barrels of oil had stopped after an explosion caused by a naval mine.

"This is the third oil tanker to have exploded and caught fire today as a result of attempting to pass through an unauthorised route," the IRGC said.

A day earlier, Iran's armed forces had said at least four tankers stopped in the area after hitting mines.