A product tanker operated by Zodiac Maritime, which is controlled by Israeli tycoon Eyal Ofer, came under attack off the coast of Oman. Two seafarers were killed in the incident.
The 49,992-dwt Mercer Street (built 2013) was involved in a “suspected piracy incident” on Thursday when ballasting from Dar es Salaam to Fujairah, Zodiac said on Twitter.
“With profound sadness, we understand the incident…has resulted in the deaths of two crew members on board: a Romanian national and a UK national.”
The company said it was not aware of harm to any other crew member.
The vessel, owned by Japan's Taihei Kaiun, is currently under the control of the crew and sailing to a safe location at 14 knots with a US naval escort.
Separately, United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received reports of a vessel attacked 152 nautical miles (282 km) north-east of the Omani port of Duqm on Thursday evening.
But the Royal Navy task force described the assault as a “non-piracy incident”.
Further details of the incident are not immediately available. There are no reports as to the extent of the damage to the ship.
“Our primary concern remains the safety and well-being of everyone on board and all those affected by the situation,” said Zodiac, which has a ship-management office in London.
“An investigation into the incident is currently underway. We continue to work closely with the UKMTO and other relevant authorities.“
The Mercer Street has protection and indemnity cover with the UK P&I Club. The tanker is registered in Liberia.
While no entity has taken responsibility for the incident, it comes amid heightened tensions between Israel and Iran as the negotiations between Tehran and world powers over an international nuclear deal remains stalled.
Since 2019, Iran and Israel have been accusing each other of waging attacks on vessels and land-based targets in what several international news outlets refer to as a "shadow war".
Security intelligence provider Dryad Global said the latest attack bears "considerable similarity” to the ongoing conflicts.
“There is currently no indication that the incident was the result of any act of traditional piracy,” Dryad said in a note.
“Whilst the [Zodiac] statement may refer to piracy, this may be due to a liberal interpretation of the asymmetric nature of the attack.”
According to the Associated Press, a US official said it was unknown who was behind the attack, while an Israeli official blamed Iran.
Iran's state-run Arabic-language TV station, Al Alam, reportedly said the attack was retaliation for last week's bombing of the Al-Dabaa Military Airport in Syria.
In early July, Israeli officials blamed Iran after a fire broke out on the 8,704-teu CSAV Tyndall (built 2014) as the containership travelled across the Indian Ocean.
The vessel had also been previously connected to Zodiac, but it was operated by London-based Oceonix Services when the incident occurred.
Dryad believes the Mercer Street is the fifth attacked ship linked to Israel in the “shadow war”.
“The death of two personnel would represent a significant escalation in events that…would likely lead to significant international condemnation and would require diplomatic redress,” Dryad said.
