This July 5, 2023, image released by the US Department of Defense shows a video screenshot of an Iranian naval vessel approaching the Richmond Voyager in the Gulf of Oman. (PHOTO / US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE VIA AFP)
TEHRAN – Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO) said on Thursday that a Bahamian-flagged oil tanker, which fled toward Oman after hitting an Iranian vessel, has been under an Iranian court order for seizure.
In a statement published on its website, the PMO said the incident occurred on Tuesday, in which the Bahamian-flagged oil tanker, identified as the Richmond Voyager, fled toward Oman in violation of international maritime law and ignorance of warnings by an Iranian Navy cruiser.
After the issuing of the judicial order for seizure, the Iranian Navy detected Richmond Voyager on Wednesday morning and gave it warnings, but the tanker ignored them and changed course toward Oman's territorial waters, the statement noted
The collision severely injured five of the seven crew members on board and the vessel suffered water ingress, the PMO added.
The owner of the Iranian vessel has filed a complaint with judicial authorities of Hormuzgan Province, requesting for seizing the tanker, according to the statement.
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After the issuing of the judicial order for seizure, the Iranian Navy detected Richmond Voyager on Wednesday morning and gave it warnings, but the tanker ignored them and changed course toward Oman's territorial waters, the statement noted.
Maritime Security Coordination Center in Iran's southeastern port of Chabahar has informed Omani authorities of the issue, saying follow-ups and efforts will continue to seize the oil tanker, according to the statement.
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The statement comes after US Naval Forces Central Command claimed on Wednesday that it "prevented Iran from seizing two commercial tankers in international waters in the Gulf of Oman" earlier in the day, the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker TRF Moss and Richmond Voyager.
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Iran rejected on Wednesday the US claim that its forces had "tried to seize" the two foreign tankers in the Gulf of Oman, the official news agency IRNA reported, quoting an informed Iranian military source.