Israeli-linked tanker hit by bomb-carrying drone off Oman

An oil tanker associated with an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman, amid heightened tensions with Iran, officials said.

The attack on Liberian-flagged tanker Pacific Zircon reportedly happened on Tuesday night.

The ship is operated by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping, a company ultimately owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer.

Eastern Pacific Shipping said the Pacific Zircon, carrying gas oil, had been “hit by a projectile” 150 miles off the coast of Oman.

“We are in communication with the vessel and there is no reports of injuries or pollution. All crew are safe and accounted for,” the company said.

“There is some minor damage to the vessel’s hull but no spillage of cargo or water ingress.”

An Israeli official said it appeared that Iran carried out the attack with a Shahed-136 exploding drone – one kind being used by Russia to target infrastructure and civilian targets in Ukraine.

“It is an Iranian attack, there is a consensus on this in the Israeli intelligence and defence community,” the source said.

No one immediately claimed the attack, but Iran and Israel have been engaged in a years-long shadow war in the wider Middle East, with some drone attacks targeting Israeli-associated vessels travelling around the region.

The US also blamed Tehran for a series of attacks off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Iran at the time had begun escalating its nuclear programme after the unilateral US withdrawal from Iran’s atomic deal with world powers.

In 2021, a suspected Iranian drone strike hit Israeli-associated oil tanker Mercer Street off Oman, killing two people onboard.

It was not immediately clear where the Pacific Zircon was on Wednesday. Satellite-tracking data from late on Tuesday provided by MarineTraffic.com put the vessel deep in the Arabian Sea after leaving the Omani port of Sohar.

Since the collapse of Iran’s nuclear deal, non-proliferation experts warn the Islamic republic now has enough enriched uranium to make at least one nuclear weapon, although Tehran insists its programme is peaceful.

Tehran has also been lashing out at its perceived enemies abroad as nationwide protests challenge its theocracy.

Torbjorn Soltvedt, an analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, said the attack “does not come as a surprise”.

“The risk of attacks against shipping and energy infrastructure in the wider region is rising mainly due to the lack of progress in US-Iranian nuclear diplomacy and the decision by Washington to apply further sanctions pressure on Iran,” he said. “Since 2019, Iran has consistently responded to new US sanctions with covert military action in the region.”

The came days ahead of the World Cup in Qatar. While Doha maintains good relations with Tehran, with whom it shares a massive natural offshore natural gas field, Israelis will be attending the tournament.

Iran’s national team will face England and the US in first-round matches – two countries it accuses of fomenting the unrest in Iran.