The crew of the bitumen carrier Asphalt Princess are reported to have disabled their ship’s engine to prevent armed gunmen from taking control and diverting it to Iran.
UK intelligence sources told British daily The Times that this common anti-piracy move kept the Glory International-managed ship in international waters until naval forces could arrive on scene to assist.
The “squad of heavily armed men”, which multiple intelligence sources have claimed were Iranian commandos, fled in small boats when US and Omani warships approached the stricken vessel.
The 9,700-dwt Asphalt Princess (built 1976) sent out a distress broadcast on Tuesday claiming that had been taken over by armed Iranian gunmen while in the Gulf of Oman during a voyage from Khor Fakkan to Karachi.
The incident took place during a period of heightened tension in the region, coming less than a week after two people were killed on the Zodiac Maritime-managed product tanker Mercer Street (built 2013) during a drone attack for which Iran has also been blamed.
Crew unharmed
A maritime security expert told TradeWinds that the combination of the Asphalt Princess’s crew implementing standard anti-piracy measures, and naval forces already being on high alert, prevented the situation on board the vessel from escalating further.
None of the crew on board the bitumen tanker were injured during their ordeal.
While sources in Dubai told TradeWinds that the incident did not appear to be politically motivated, security consultancy Dryad Global blamed internal tensions between the politically powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the country's conventional military.
Dryad said it was likely that Iran's navy sought to seize the ship as a means of proving its utility, as the IRGC's naval arm has begun acquiring vessels capable of operating in international waters where only the navy used to operate.
Iran has denied any involvement in the seizure of the vessel. It foreign ministry officials have called the incident suspicious, and suggested that outside forces looking to stir up trouble for the Islamic Republic were to blame.
Iran has also denied it was behind the drone attack against the Mercer Street.
