Tanker boarded by Iranian forces not arrested

August 14 ------ Iranian naval forces boarded an oil and chemical tanker in the Gulf of Oman, numerous media outlets around the world reported today. The vessel has been identified as the Liberian-flagged, 8,100 dwt MT Wila. Initial reports indicated that the tanker was boarded 23 nautical miles NW of the Khor Fakkan Anchorage, south east of the Strait of Hormuz, on 12 August, according to maritime security intelligence company Dryad Global. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) shared a video on Twitter, claiming that MT Wila was overtaken and boarded by an Iranian “Sea King” helicopter and two ships. The Iranian government did not immediately release any statements on the matter.

Although initial source reporting indicated that a US Sentinel call sign had received word that the vessel had been boarded, the ship was not detained, Dryad confirmed in an update. “We can confirm that the MV WILA has not been detained by Iranian Naval forces. The boarding comes after two other vessels MT CHEMWAY ARROW and MT FREUD were potentially harassed earlier this week.” Dryad added that Wila is believed to have entered UAE’s territorial waters around 1720 UTC and is currently showing at the Khor Fakkan Anchorage as “Not Under Command”.

As explained, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces are believed to have potentially attempted to interdict two ships in the Persian Gulf earlier this month. On 8 August, the Marshall Islands-flagged MT Freud was transiting in the vicinity of Kish Island off Iran when it suddenly made an irregular northward turn before sailing into Iranian TTW for 40 minutes and afterward resuming its voyage to Saudi Arabia, Dryad said referring to information supplied by TankerTrackers. What is more, the Panama-flagged vessel MT Chemway Arrow was transiting close to Iranian TTW, west of Lavan Island, on 11 August when it made an irregular northward turn and drifting in the Iranian waters for 6 hours before resuming voyage towards Jubail.

Source: offshore-energy.biz