Six oil tankers and a U.S. spy drone have been attacked since May either in, or near, the Strait of Hormuz — a strategically important waterway which separates Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
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Oil prices rose sharply on Friday morning after Iranian officials said that two rockets had struck an Iranian tanker traveling through the Red Sea.
Brent crude futures were up 2.07% at $60.33 a barrel by 8:00 a.m. London time, shortly after the news, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures showing similar gains.
The officials said that the tanker had been traveling through the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia. Saudi officials were not immediately available to respond to requests for comment, according to Reuters.
The National Iranian Oil Company told NBC that the tanker was hit by two explosions at 5:00 a.m. and 5:20 a.m. local time, 60 miles from the city of Jeddah. The state-run IRNA news agency identified the vessel as the Sabity, with NBC reporting that the crew were uninjured and were working to stabilize the ship.
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