Iran seized Vietnamese oil tanker in Gulf of Oman, US officials say

Revolutionary Guard troops took control of the MV Southys, a vessel suspected of trying to transfer sanctioned Iranian crude oil to Asia, at gunpoint last month

Iran celebrated the ship’s capture in dramatic footage aired on state television, a day before the anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the US embassy in Tehran

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Revolutionary Guard speed boats are seen in front of a US warship (left) amid the seizure of a Vietnamese-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman. Photo: Revolutionary Guard via AP

Published: 3:52am, 4 Nov 2021Updated: 5:40am, 4 Nov 2021

Iran seized a Vietnamese-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman last month and still holds the vessel, two US officials told Associated Press on Wednesday, revealing the latest provocation in Mideast waters as tensions escalate between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s nuclear programme.

Iran’s powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard troops took control of the MV Southys, a vessel that analysts suspect of trying to transfer sanctioned Iranian crude oil to Asia, on October 24 at gunpoint. US forces had monitored the seizure, but ultimately did not take action as the vessel sailed into Iranian waters.

Iran celebrated their capture of the vessel in dramatic footage aired on state television, the day before the 42nd anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the US embassy in Tehran.

Officials at the Vietnamese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ship-tracking data analysed by the AP from MarineTraffic.com showed the vessel still off Iran’s southern port of Bandar Abbas on Tuesday. A satellite photo from Planet Labs also showed the vessel off Bandar Abbas in recent days.

State television footage shows an Iranian soldier on a jet boat in front of a US warship during the seizure of a Vietnam-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman. Photo: Revolutionary Guard/Sepahnews via EPA-EFE

The two US officials spoke on condition of anonymity as the information had yet to be made public amid ongoing attempts to restart talks over Iran’s tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.