The oil tanker St. Nikolas (formerly Suez Rajan), affiliated with the Greek shipping company Empire Navigation, is reportedly under occupation by paramilitary groups, according to a British military briefing.
International agencies are reporting a new incident of chaos in the sea lanes of the Middle East, while the UK's British military agency Maritime Trade Operations informs that the incident was recorded in the waters between Oman and Iran at the entrance and exit of the Straits of Hormuz, through which one fifth of the world's merchant fleet passes.
Further attempts to contact the vessel failed.
The private intelligence firm Ambrey said "six military personnel" boarded the ship, which it identified as the oil tanker St. Nikolas. It said the men had covered surveillance cameras as they boarded.
There is reportedly a Greek sailor on board.
The ship was at the center of a United States-Iran dispute over 1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil In February 2022, the group United Against Nuclear Iran said it suspected the tanker was carrying oil from Iran's Khargh Island , the main oil distribution terminal in the Persian Gulf.
For months, the ship was grounded in the South China Sea off the northeast coast of Singapore before suddenly sailing off the coast of Texas without explanation. The ship offloaded its cargo to another tanker in August.
The incident occurred 50 nautical miles east of Sohar, Oman. Security experts say the ship's tracking system has been disabled and the vessel is believed to be headed for Iran.
Empire Navigation, an Athens-based company, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesman for Empire Navigation confirmed that contact with the ship was lost at around 06:30 am Athens time (04:30 GMT) "as it was sailing off Oman, near Sohar. The ship is manned by a total of 19 crew members: 18 Filipinos and one Greek."
It should be noted that this tanker was at the center of a United States-Iran dispute over 1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil. In February 2022, the group United Against Nuclear Iran said it suspected how the tanker was carrying oil from Iran's Khargh Island , the main oil distribution terminal in the Persian Gulf.
As a result, for months, the ship was grounded in the South China Sea off the northeast coast of Singapore before suddenly sailing off the coast of Texas without explanation.
