DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – An explosion struck an Israeli freighter sailing out of the Middle East on Friday, an inexplicable explosion that renewed concerns about ship safety amid mounting tensions between the US and Iran.
The crew and ship were safe, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which is run by the British Navy. The explosion forced the ship to the nearest port.
The site of the blast, the Gulf of Oman, saw a series of explosions in 2019 that the US Navy blamed on Iran against the backdrop of sharply mounting threats between former President Donald Trump and Iranian leaders. Tehran denied the allegations, which came after Trump gave up the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran’s world powers and re-imposed harsh sanctions on the country.
In recent weeks, as Joe Biden’s government strives to re-establish dialogue with Iran, Tehran has escalated its breaches of the nuclear deal to create power over Washington. Through the deal, Tehran agreed to limit uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of crippling sanctions.
Dryad Global, a maritime intelligence company, identified the affected ship as the MV Helios Ray, a roll-on, roll-off cargo ship flying the Bahamian flag. Another private security officer, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence issues, identified the ship in the same way as the Helios Ray.
Satellite tracking data from the website MarineTraffic.com showed that the Helios Ray had almost entered the Arabian Sea at around 6 a.m. GMT on Friday, before suddenly turning and heading back to the Strait of Hormuz. It still listed Singapore as its destination on its tracker.
While details of the explosion remained unclear, two US defense officials told the AP that the ship sustained two holes on the port side and two holes on the starboard side just above the waterline during the blast. Officials said it remained unclear what caused the holes. They spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss undisclosed information about the incidents.
A United Nations ship database identified the ship’s owners as a Tel Aviv-based firm called Ray Shipping Ltd. Calls to Ray Shipping went unanswered on Friday.
Abraham Ungar, 74, who is called “Rami”, is the founder of Ray Shipping Ltd. and is known as one of the richest men in Israel. He made his fortune in shipping and construction.
According to the Nikola Y. Vaptsarov Naval Academy, where Ungar provides support and naval training, he owns dozens of car-carrying ships and employs thousands of engineers.
The Bahrain-based US Navy’s 5th Fleet said it was “aware and monitoring” the situation.
While the circumstances of the explosion remain unclear, Dryad Global said it was quite possible that the explosion was the result of “asymmetric activity by Iranian military personnel.”
As Iran seeks to pressure the United States to lift sanctions, the country may try to “use military means to practice vigorous diplomacy,” Dryad reported. Iran did not immediately acknowledge the incident.
Friday’s explosion recalled the summer of 2019, when the US military blamed Iran for suspected attacks on two oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategic shipping routes. In recent months, the US had attributed a series of suspected attacks to Iran, including the use of limpet mines – designed to be magnetically attached to a ship’s hull – to paralyze four oil tankers off the nearby Emirati port of Fujairah.
The Associated Press writers, Laurie Kellman in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Robert Burns in Washington contributed to this report.