Several people have been injured after a projectile struck a tanker vessel that was sailing in waters of the Persian Gulf, according to information reported this Thursday by the UK’s Commercial Maritime Operations Centre (UKMTO, for its acronym in English), a body linked to the British Navy.
"A tanker vessel has been hit by a projectile of unknown origin while sailing eastbound. Several casualties have been recorded, who have been taken ashore to receive medical assistance," the body said in a statement, without offering for now a specific figure of the injured.
In its note, the UKMTO has added that "for now there is no assessment of the damage or information on the environmental impact," while it has asked the ships located in the area to "sail with caution" and "report any suspicious activity."
For its part, the British security company Ambrey has indicated that "a merchant vessel has been hit by an unknown projectile while attempting to leave through the Strait of Hormuz," about fourteen nautical miles (around 26 kilometers) from Ras al Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
"The vessel received a hit at the stern, which caused a fire in the engine room," the company specified, which has underlined that for the moment it does not have precise data on any possible additional casualties or on any eventual damage to the environment.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard had said earlier in the day that two other oil tankers have caught fire in the past hours due to "an accident" when they were trying to cross the Strait of Hormuz via "an unauthorized route," pointing to "a large-scale explosion," without providing more details.
Tehran maintains that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz—the key passage for the transport of crude oil from the Persian Gulf to numerous countries—is the consequence of the offensive launched in February by the United States and Israel against the country, and it has insisted that it is only safe to cross via routes approved by its Armed Forces.
Washington, in contrast, holds that there is no such blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, since it controls the strait militarily on its outer side and assures that it escorts different vessels with the aim of ensuring that oil exports from the Middle East continue.