Ship Managed by Israeli Company Attached by Aircraft off the coast of Oman ...Iran? US Very Concerned

 

Zodiac Maritime, the Israeli company that manages the ship attacked off the coast of Oman, has confirmed that two individuals on board have died due to the attack.

"Two crew members, one a Romanian citizen and the other a British citizen, died from their wounds shortly after the attack," the company stated. "From preliminary reports, the attack was carried out by an unmanned aircraft."

The Jerusalem Post reports that the vessel is a Japanese tanker named M/T Mercer Street. It was sailing from Tanzania to the UAE without a cargo when it was reportedly set upon by pirates.

Official sources, including Israel, the United States of America's Fifth Fleet, and the government of Oman, have yet to comment.

The United States is deeply concerned by reports of an attack on an Israeli-managed tanker off Oman, US State Department spokeswoman Jalina Porter said on Friday.

“We are also deeply concerned by the reports and are monitoring the situation closely,” Porter said at a regular news briefing, according to Reuters.

Zodiac Maritime, the Israeli company that manages the ship attacked off the coast of Oman, confirmed earlier on Friday that two individuals on board have died due to the attack.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz and IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi held a security consultation following the attack on the ship.

An Israeli official commented on the attack on the ship and said, "Iran is sowing violence and destruction in every corner of the region. Out of eagerness to attack an Israeli target, they have complicated and incriminated themselves by killing foreign civilians. The masks are coming off and it is impossible to pretend that the nature of the Iranian regime is unknown."

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid responded to the attack and said, "Iran is not just an Israeli problem, but an exporter of terrorism, destruction and instability that harms us all. We must never remain silent in the face of Iranian terrorism, which also harms freedom of navigation."

"I am in constant contact with British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, I mentioned to him tonight the need to respond severely to the attack on the ship in which a British citizen was killed," he added.

“In addition, I instructed the embassies in Washington, London, and the United Nations to work with their colleagues in the administration and the relevant delegations at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.”