ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A tanker was struck by an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) near Oman's Sohar anchorage on Sunday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said early Monday, as attacks continue to threaten maritime security around the Strait of Hormuz.
UKMTO initially reported an incident involving a tanker near the anchorage, saying the crew's status, extent of damage and potential environmental impact were unknown. In an update, the maritime security agency reclassified the incident as an attack after confirming that the vessel had been hit by a drone.
“Local authorities are assisting in the evacuation of the crew,” UKMTO said, advising vessels to “transit with caution” and report any suspicious activity as authorities investigate the incident.
This comes as at least 17 attacks against tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waterways have been reported since September 28, alongside at least two confirmed incidents in which vessels were hailed, all linked to Iran, according to a maritime security assessment by the Washington Institute.
On Sunday, a tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile while sailing outbound through the Strait of Hormuz, sustaining damage to its port side, according to UKMTO.
The latest incidents come amid mounting tensions between Washington and Tehran over Iran's nuclear program, maritime security and control of the Strait of Hormuz, despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to reach an agreement.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said Sunday that Iran's nuclear activities demonstrated its pursuit of a nuclear weapon and vowed that President Donald Trump would bring the effort to an end.
“There is no country in the world that has to enrich to weapons-grade that isn't pursuing a nuclear weapon that supposedly just wants civilian power,” Waltz told Fox News.
Waltz also pointed to Washington's economic pressure on Tehran, saying Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent “has his foot on the neck of the Iranian economy,” with “no oil going out,” a weakening currency and depleted foreign reserves.
He dismissed Tehran's latest diplomatic proposal, which was presented during the United Nations General Assembly in New York in late September.
“They have already tried under the UN General Assembly to come back and offer a deal, but it was a garbage deal and President Trump doesn't take bad deals,” Waltz said. “He is going to end this regime's pursuit of a nuclear weapon.”
The proposal called for Washington to lift its blockade on Iranian southern ports and release frozen Iranian funds in exchange for Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz within seven days while negotiations continued.
Tehran has continued to assert its authority over the strategic waterway. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, accused Trump of resorting to smuggling operations in the strait, according to Iran's state broadcaster IRIB.
“Every day he claims that the Strait of Hormuz is open, but in response, I say: You are smuggling, but the Strait is under Iran's control, and we are the ones managing it,” Rezaei said.
Separately, Rezaei said late Sunday that Washington “has agreed to some of Iran’s seven conditions, but we consider its response INADEQUATE,” adding that “Iranian diplomacy has changed and there will be no return to the status quo ante.”
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most critical energy corridors, carrying roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the US-Israeli war with Iran began on February 28.
Washington imposed a blockade on Iranian southern ports on July 14, maintaining that restrictions would be lifted only if Tehran stopped attacking vessels transiting the strait. Iran, meanwhile, has sought to leverage its asserted control over the waterway in negotiations with the United States.
