‘Commandos’ are reported to have boarded a vessel in a busy worldwide transport lane off the coast of Iran sparking fears the pariah state is concerned within the assault.
AP studies a video seen by the press company exhibits troopers raiding a ship close to the Strait of Hormuz by helicopter Saturday, an assault a defence official attributed to Iran amid wider tensions between Tehran and the West.
The Strait of Hormuz is a slim stretch of sea separating the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and is a vital “choke level” for worldwide commerce and oil distribution.
A defence official, who spoke on situation of anonymity to debate intelligence issues, shared the video with the AP which the company mentioned confirmed commandos rappelling down onto a stack of containers sitting on the deck of the vessel.
A crew member on the ship may very well be heard saying: “Do not come out.” He then tells his colleagues to go to the ship’s bridge as extra commandos come down on the deck. One soldier might be seen kneeling above the others to offer them potential cowl hearth.
It is understood the assault corresponds to recognized particulars of a boarding, and the helicopter concerned gave the impression to be one utilized by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which has carried out different ship raids previously.
The UK Maritime Commerce Operations confirmed a report on X describing a ship being “seized by regional authorities” within the Gulf of Oman off the Emirati port metropolis of Fujairah.
The vessel concerned is probably going the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, a container ship reportedly a part of a gaggle owned by an Israeli billionaire.
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