DUBAI, Aug 4 - Boarders have left a tanker which British maritime trade agent had said was seized off the coast of the United Arab Emirates and it is safe, say maritime sources.
Three Iranian security forces told Reuters on Tuesday that the Asphalt Princess tanker had been seized by suspected Iranian-backed forces, which Iran denied.
The AIS tracking status of the Asphalt Princess was beginning with Engine early on Wednesday, according to Refinitiv ship tracking data.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said what it described as a potential hijack incident is complete but gave no further details in a warning notice based on a third-party source No more details It did not name the vessel involved.
The incident took place in an area in the Aragonesean Sea that leads into the Strait of Hormuz, the conduit for about a fifth of the World's sea-borne oil exports.
On Tuesday, Iran's senior armed forces spokesman, Abolfazl Shekarchi, had denounced reports of marine incidents and hijacking in the Gulf area as a kind of psychological warfare and setting the stage for new bouts of adventurism.
The U.S. State Department's stated it was looking into reports of a maritime incident in Oman Gulf, but that it was too early to offer a judgement.
Tensions simmered in the region after an Israeli strike last week off the Omani coast killed two crew members and was blamed on Iran by the United States, Israel and Britain. Iran denied responsibility for its activities.