A ship belonging to Evergreen Marine was hit by an unknown object off Oman but has now safely departed the Strait of Hormuz, the Taiwanese company said on Friday.
There is no doubt the attack was carried out by Iran © Mena Today
A ship belonging to Evergreen Marine was hit by an unknown object off Oman but has now safely departed the Strait of Hormuz, the Taiwanese company said on Friday.
In a statement to the Taiwan stock exchange, the company said the starboard side of the bridge of the Ever Lovely, owned by its Singapore subsidiary, was hit a day earlier by an unknown object 3.6 nautical miles off Oman's Khawr Naiwah.
After an initial inspection by the crew, damage was found around the bridge windows. But the crew, vessel and cargo are all safe, it said.
The main engine and navigation instruments are operating normally and there are no seaworthiness issues, the company said.
It added that the ship was following the recommended route of the British navy agency UKMTO while passing through the strait.
UKMTO said on Thursday that a cargo ship had reported a suspected attack as it attempted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz close to the Omani coast.
In a press statement on Friday, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore said it was aware that the Singapore-flagged Ever Lovely sustained damage at about 1000 SGT on Thursday, and that it would remain in close contact with the vessel's management company.
It added that it was deeply concerned about the incident, which it said was "unprovoked, unjustifiable and a breach of international law".
Reporting by Ben Blanchard
The Strait of Hormuz is "under Iran's control and management", the head of Iran's Basij paramilitary unit, Hossein Taeb, said on Thursday, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.
Iran and the United States remain at loggerheads over efforts to agree a permanent end to the war in the Gulf, according to a senior Iranian source who said there had been no progress in talks to revive the interim deal agreed in June and define a timeframe to implement it.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that a deal reached with Syria on the future of Moscow's military bases in the country would boost ties between the nations, and a Syrian source said some Russian forces would still be stationed there under the agreement.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.