The Royal Navy reported that the hijackers who seized a ship off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in the Gulf of Oman had left the ship.
British Army Maritime Trade Operations said the incident, which it described the night before as a «probable hijacking», was «complete». No other details were mentioned.
«Ship safely,» the group said, without specifying the ship.
Shipping authority Lloyd’s List and maritime intelligence firm Dryad Global have identified the hijacked ship as a Panama-flagged asphalt tanker Asphalt Princess.
The ship’s owner, who is listed by UAE free zone-based Glory International, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Satellite tracking data for the Asphalt Princess showed it was gradually moving toward Iranian waters off the port of Jask early Wednesday, according to MarineTraffic.com. But later, it stopped and changed course again towards Oman, before UKMTO made its statement.
It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the kidnapping attempt, which erupted amid heightened tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran’s shattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Over the past few years, commercial shipping in the vital waterways of the Persian Gulf has become increasingly caught in the crossfire.
Recently, the US, UK and Israel blamed Iran for a drone attack on an oil tanker linked to an Israeli billionaire off the coast of Oman that killed two people, one of whom was British.
The raid was the first known deadly attack in the Shadow War against ships in Middle Eastern waters. Tehran has denied any role.
Apparently, in response to the vessel’s seizure on Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh described the recent naval attacks in the Persian Gulf as «completely suspicious.» He denied that Iran had played any role.
Late Tuesday, as the incident continued, six oil tankers off the coast of Fujairah around the same time announced through automatic identification system tracking devices that they were «not under command,» according to MarineTraffic.com. This usually means that the ship has lost its power and is no longer able to steer.
The Gulf of Oman is located near the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which one-fifth of the oil passes.
Fujairah, on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates, is a major port in the region for ships to transport new oil cargo, pick up supplies or exchange crew.
Over the past two years, the waters off Fujairah have seen a series of explosions and kidnappings.
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