The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said a tanker was hit roughly eight nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman, and that the crew abandoned ship and boarded a lifeboat. The agency reported no environmental impact and advised vessels transiting the area to exercise caution while authorities investigate.
Martin Kelly, Head of Advisory at EOS Risk Group, identified the ship as the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company vessel Kaifan, IMO 9656046. The Kaifan broadcast a distress call on VHF Channel 16 stating that the tanker had been struck by a drone or missile, causing a fire in its engine room.
The strike came less than a day after Greek owner Dynacom Tankers confirmed two of its managed tankers were hit off the Omani coast. The Panamax tanker Kavomaleas, sailing under the Malta flag, was struck twice and set ablaze in its engine room, forcing its crew to abandon ship. A second Dynacom tanker sustained damage in a separate attack but its crew stayed aboard.
The incidents follow the collapse of the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran earlier this month. U.S. forces have carried out repeated strikes on Iranian military targets, and Iran has continued to target merchant shipping transiting the region, with UKMTO logging a rising tempo of projectile and small boat incidents in and around the strait.
For owners and charterers, the message is that the world's most important oil chokepoint is once again priced as a war zone. War risk premiums on hulls transiting the Gulf have jumped, some owners have paused voyages, and traders are watching for diversions around the Cape as insurers reassess coverage on Middle East routes.