At least one person was killed and two oil tankers caught fire in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Basra, Iraq, on Wednesday, after explosions that officials suspect were caused by an attack.Reuters reported that Iranian boats loaded with explosives may have rammed the ships, citing the preliminary results of an Iraqi-led investigation into the incident.
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Video footage of the incident showed that the two tankers were anchored side by side when the explosions occurred, causing large fires that spread across the surrounding waters.CNN reported that the ships in question are the Maltese-flagged Zefyros, and the Marshall Islands-flagged Safesea Vishnu.
The ships may have been carrying up to 400,000 barrels of Iraqi crude oil, according to the New York Post. .Farhan al-Fartusi, general manager of the Iraqi Ports Company, told CNN that all 38 foreign crew members had been evacuated from the affected ships after the “explosions.” Images from the scene showed flames spreading across the water, indicating oil leaking from the ships.According to Al Jazeera, the incident occurred within Iraqi territorial waters in the port of Al-Faw near Basra.
The Safesea Vishnu is owned by US-based Safesea Transport Inc, while the Zefyros is owned by a Greek company. Safesea Transport did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The reported attack comes amid escalating tensions in the region and the disruption of global oil supply routes. Oil prices rose this week on concerns about shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key passage through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil passes daily.Military actions and counterattacks linked to the ongoing Iranian conflict have disrupted traffic in the strait, prompting many producers to reduce production. Iran also threatened to prevent oil tankers from passing through the strategic waterway.The United States responded by targeting several Iranian mine-laying ships earlier this week, while President Donald Trump indicated he might release oil from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to stabilize prices. Separately, the International Energy Agency said its 31 member states plan to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from emergency stockpiles to offset supply disruptions.
