Two sailors are missing, while 23 others have been rescued after an attack on an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, Omani authorities announced.
The Oman Maritime Safety Centre said the Panamanian-flagged El Gaia was being towed to an Omani port after a fire broke out in the engine room on board. The ship was hit about 1.3 nautical miles, or 2.4 kilometres, north of the Musandam Peninsula, authorities said.
The incident has sparked fresh clashes in the parties' versions of what happened in one of the world's most important maritime corridors. On Monday, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the tanker had struck a naval mine and caught fire while passing through a route that Iran described as restricted and unsafe.
The US military dismissed this version, stating that the Iranian report was false. According to the US military, El Gaia was hit by an Iranian missile last month and then by a drone over the weekend.
The British Maritime Operations Centre also said it had received a report of a fire on board a ship, which had been hit by an unidentified projectile in the early hours of Sunday while sailing in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest incident comes just days after another attack on an oil supertanker in the same area, which killed two Filipino sailors. Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed the Saudi-owned Sidr caught fire after striking a naval mine. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, said the ship was attacked by Iran, while maritime security companies reported that it was hit by shells north of Musandam.
According to the International Maritime Organization, at least 22 sailors have lost their lives in 79 confirmed incidents in the Strait of Hormuz and other parts of the Middle East since the start of the war between the US, Israel and Iran in late February.
