Saturday’s incident followed drone and missile attacks in the Red Sea by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels in a declaration of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is at war with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
The Pentagon later said a Japanese-owned chemical tanker was hit off the coast of India by a drone launched from Iran. It was the first time the Pentagon had openly accused Iran of directly targeting ships since Israel’s war with Tehran-backed Hamas began.
“We state that we completely reject these claims and that they are worthless,” said Nasser Kanani, a spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry, when asked about the US accusations.
“Such claims are designed to project, divert public attention and cover up the American government’s full support for the Zionist regime’s (Israeli) crimes in Gaza [Ruože]”, the Iranian representative added.
The Pentagon statement said the MV Chem Pluto, a ship attacked off India, was under the Liberian flag and operated by a Dutch entity, although the ship is owned by a Japanese company.
Maritime security company Ambrey said the chemical tanker was linked to Israel and was sailing from Saudi Arabia to India.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Dutch company that operates the MV Chem Pluto is linked to Israeli shipping magnate Idan Ofer.
No one was injured in the attack and the fire was extinguished, the Pentagon said.
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2024-07-23 09:10:03