The US Central Command (Centcom) said in a statement that the Iranians had tried to seize the tanker “TRF Moss”, which flies the flag of the Marshall Islands, according to what was reported by “Agence France Presse”.
Three hours later, the Iranians attempted to seize the Bahamas-flagged tanker, Richmond Voyager.
And she confirmed that the Iranian naval personnel fled the scene in both cases, as soon as they saw the American destroyer “USS McFaul” near them.
A spokesman for the US Fifth Fleet, Timothy Hawkins, provided additional details, including that an Iranian navy ship fired during an attempt to seize the second ship, without causing any losses.
Both incidents took place in the Gulf, in the waters between Iran and Oman.
British maritime security firm Ambry said a warship flying the flag of a multinational maritime task force was in the area at the time, and had asked the Iranian navy to “stop harassing” one of the two merchant vessels.
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