With a simple announcement, Iran confirms the result and the occupation of the two tankers with a Greek flag in the Persian Gulf.
In particular, the IRGC Public Relations Department of the IRGC announced that: “Today (Friday) the IRGC Navy seized two Greek oil tankers due to violations in the blue waters of the Persian Gulf.”
According to The Iranian Coast Guard has seized two tankers off the coast of Bandar Lengeh and Assaluyeh, Iranian state media reported. they confiscated them.
The Guardian announcement comes as tensions between Iran and the West turn “red” over deadlocked negotiations over its evolving nuclear program. And while there have been a number of attacks in the Persian Gulf since former President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018, there has been no significant incident at sea for months.
The Revolutionary Guards issued a statement accusing the tankers of unspecified infringements.
Anxiety for the Greek sailors
An Iranian navy helicopter reportedly crashed into the Greek-flagged Delta Poseidon, sailing in international waters (22 nautical miles off the coast of Iran) in the Gulf, on Friday afternoon.
, armed captured the crew of the ship, including two Greek citizens.
A similar incident was reported to have occurred on another Greek-flagged ship, aboard seven Greek citizens, located near the Iranian coast.
At the moment it is not possible to communicate with the ships of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Merchant Shipping, however the Greek authorities are on alert in order to coordinate their actions.
American reaction Asked about the Iranian claim, Timothy Hawkins, commander of the US Navy's 5th Fleet based in the Middle East, told the AP that “we are watching”, but declined to comment further.
p>
The history
According to the AP, these are Iranian retaliations for the case of the Iranian-flagged ship Pegas, with 19 Russian crew. The United States has seized Iranian oil cargo aboard the ship. “According to Greek sources, the ship's officials have released official documents from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), based on which it appears that The ownership of the ship had been transferred before the war to a company that is not subject to sanctions.
The tanker sailed under the Russian flag until March 1, when it was renamed Lana and hoisted the Iranian flag.
