Iran denies involvement in attack on Israeli-managed tanker off Oman
Iran's foreign ministry on Sunday rejected "baseless accusations" after Israel blamed its arch-foe for a deadly attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman. "The Zionist regime ... must stop such baseless accusations -- and it is not their first time to direct such accusations at Iran," ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters in a televised press conference.
- World
- Reuters
- Published Date: 11:12 | 01 August 2021
- Modified Date: 11:18 | 01 August 2021
Iran was not involved in an attack on an Israeli-managed petroleum product tanker off the coast of Oman, the Iranian Foreign ministry spokesman said on Sunday, referring to an incident last week that killed two and which Israel blamed on the Islamic Republic.
"The Zionist regime (Israel) has created insecurity terror and violence ... these accusations about Iran's involvement are condemned by Tehran," Saeed Khatibzadeh told a weekly news conference.
"Such accusations are meant by Israel to divert attention from facts and are baseless," he said.
A Briton and a Romanian were killed on Thursday when the Mercer Street, a Liberian-flagged, Japanese-owned ship managed by Israeli-owned Zodiac Maritime was attacked. Israel's foreign minister said the incident deserved a harsh response.
There were varying explanations for what happened to the tanker. Zodiac Maritime described the incident as "suspected piracy" and a source at the Oman Maritime Security Center as an accident that occurred outside Omani territorial waters.
U.S. and European sources familiar with intelligence reporting said Iran was their leading suspect for the incident, which a U.S. defense official said appeared to have been carried out by a drone, but stressed their governments were seeking conclusive evidence.