LONDON,WASHINGTON July 20 (NNN-AGENCIES ) – A second naval vessel has been seized in the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian authorities, the British Foreign Office confirmed Friday, as tensions soar in the key Gulf shipping lane.
Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he was “extremely concerned” by the latest incident.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said earlier it had captured a British oil tanker in the strait, alleging that the vessel had violated international law. The ship’s operator confirmed the incident and was working to contact the crew.
However, Iran’s Tasnim news agency quoted a military source denying that a second ship had been taken.
Tensions between Iran and Britain have spiked since an Iranian oil tanker was seized off Gibraltar earlier this month. Britain later accused Iran of harassing a British ship in the Gulf.
Iranian forces also have had numerous run-ins with the US military in the region.
US President Donald Trump, speaking to reporters before leaving Washington for the weekend, stressed the long-standing alliance between the United States and Britain and said the US administration would be in contact with London.
Garrett Marquis, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, accused Iran of targeting Britain with “escalatory violence” for the second time in just over a week.
Trump also said he has authorized Senator Rand Paul, a Republican ally and war sceptic, to engage in talks with Iran. Trump said Paul asked if he could get involved, and the president authorized it, amid reports that Paul already has reached out to contacts.
News that British oil tanker Stena Impero had been captured in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday initially came from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
A statement from the owner of the vessel and the ship’s manager confirmed that it was seized by “small crafts and a helicopter” at 1500 GMT and was headed north towards Iran.
“We are presently unable to contact the vessel,” a statement from Stena Bulk and Northern Marine Management said. There are 23 crew members on board, they added.
The Marine Traffic website later showed that a second vessel, the Liberia-flagged Mesdar, had apparently veered off course.
The Strait of Hormuz has become a hotspot for tensions as relations sour between Britain and Iran, and the US and Iran continue on their collision course. It is located in the Gulf, one of the world’s most important waterways for the transport of oil.
On July 4, Britain seized an Iranian oil tanker off Gibraltar for allegedly violating EU sanctions against Syria. The following week, Britain said Iranian forces had attempted to stop a British ship but were fended off by the British military.
The US has also accused Iran of attacks on tankers, though Tehran denies involvement.
Trump on Thursday claimed that the US “destroyed” an Iranian drone as it came within some 900 metres of the USS Boxer in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has denied the accusation, and the Revolutionary Guard released footage that it says disproves the claim.
Since Trump took office in 2017, the US has pursued a “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, including pulling out of the nuclear deal world powers struck with Tehran in 2015.
Last month Trump said he came close to ordering an air strike in retaliation against Iran for shooting down a US spy drone near the strait.
The US Defence Department recently said it would deploy more troops and ships to the region in an effort to step up monitoring of Iranian activities.
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