US Central Command said Thursday that on Tuesday, November 15, an Iranian-made drone struck the Pacific Zircon tanker in the Gulf of Oman.
The statement said that a multilateral operation led by a British Royal Navy frigate responded to the situation in the region.
Israeli-controlled Eastern Pacific Shipping said the attack on the Pacific Zircon tanker resulted in minor damage to the tanker’s hull, with no damage or leakage of diesel fuel.
That, as well as US Navy Fifth Fleet spokesman Tim Hawkins, confirmed on Wednesday that the United States is ready to confront Iranian threats in the region.
In an interview with Al Arabiya, he added that the United States is committed to keeping the Straits of Hormuz and Mandeb safe.
As he explained, sharing information with partners builds trust and relationships.
The statements by a Fifth Fleet spokesman came after the United States on Wednesday condemned the attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman the day before, blaming it on Iran, in a statement released by National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
“After reviewing the available information, we are confident that Iran likely carried out this attack using a drone, a lethal weapon that it has increasingly used through its proxies in the Middle East and transferred to Russia for use in Ukraine,” Sullivan said. .
The U.S. National Security Adviser’s remarks came after senior Israeli security officials accused Iran of attacking an oil tanker off the coast of Oman using a drone loaded with explosives.
They considered the attack a strategic mistake by Tehran and an attempt to provoke the West ahead of the World Cup matches in Qatar, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
They also added that the drone used to attack the tanker was the same type that Iran had previously sold to Russia.
