Iran's oil attack ' written all over ' says Trump

As US-Iranian tensions skyrocket, Trump has ruled out Teheran's earlier threats to block the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea route vital to oil supplies.

Washington:

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that a" mysterious attack "by two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman had" crushed Iran", rejecting Tehran's denial that it was involved.

As US-Iranian tensions escalated, Trump rejected Teheran's earlier threats to block the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea route vital to the world's oil supply.

A few hours after the US Army released granular images, he reported that an Iranian patrol boat removing an "unexploded foot mine" from one of the tankers, Trump said.

"Iran did it," Trump told Fox News. "You know they did it because you saw the boat. I assume that one of the mines did not explode and that Iran is probably written in it."

"You saw the boat at night trying to successfully remove the mine - and it was exposed," he added.

Iran's Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, tweeted that the US had "immediately jumped to make accusations against Iran without any factual or circumstantial evidence".

The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has called for an independent investigation.

"It is very important to know the truth. It is very important that responsibilities be clarified," Guterres told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.

"Of course, this can only be done if there is an independent entity that verifies these facts."

At the same time, the British assessment revealed that Iran was "almost certainly" behind the attacks, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said.

London blamed Thursday's attack on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard - a large and powerful branch of the Iranian army.

Oil exports choke point

In the past, Iran has repeatedly warned that it could block The Straits of Hormuz with a relatively low-tech, high-impact countermeasure against any attack by the United States.

This would disrupt oil tankers leaving the Gulf region for the Indian Ocean and global export routes.

Trump downplayed the threat.

"It won't be closed, it won't be closed for long and they know it. They were told very clearly," Trump said.

Oil prices rose in response to rising tensions.

Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said the kingdom was following the situation with "great concern" and called for action to secure maritime traffic, the Saudi news agency SPA said.

Saudi Arabia, a close ally of the United States, is a fierce regional rival of Iran.

China called on all parties to "resolve the conflict through dialogue", while the European Union called for "maximum restraint".

Russia, which has close - and sometimes strained - ties with Iran, through its foreign ministry, warned of "hasty conclusions".

The sailors saved

The oil tankers were 10 nautical miles apart and headed for Asia when they were hit by explosions on Thursday morning, after crossing the Strait of Hormuz about 25 nautical miles off the south coast of Iran.

The Front Altair, owned by Oslo

company listed Frontline, transported naphtha, a refined petroleum product. He was hit by three explosions, according to Norwegian officials.

Explosions also struck Japanese Kokuka Courageous, who was loaded with methanol, but the fire on board was quickly extinguished. A member of the crew sustained minor injuries and the vessel was heading on Friday towards the Port of Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates.

The explosions, which affected the two oil tankers at the waterline, were not claimed.

Iran stated that its navy had saved several dozen crewmembers from both ships, while the US Navy had announced the capture of 21 members of the Kokuka Courageous.

The Iranian English-language news channel aired a segment showing crew members rescued from the Altair Front, claiming they were all "healthy."

The crew of the Kokuka Courageous saw a "flying object" before a second explosion on board, said the operator's head on Friday.

Washington sent destroyer USS Mason to the scene "to provide assistance," CENTCOM said in a statement, while Oman had announced the dispatch of two Navy ships.

Iran or the proxies?'

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday's tanker explosions were "the latest in a series of attacks", which he blamed Iran or its "representatives", including the firing of Yemeni rebel missiles that wounded 26 civilians at a Saudi airport on Wednesday.

A Saudi coalition that fights the rebels it accuses of being its Iranian proxies said its anti-aircraft defenses intercepted a new rebel attack on an airport in the Islamic kingdom on Friday.

The aborted strike involving five rebel drones targeted the southwestern town of Khamis Mushait, home to a gigantic air base that has been the mainstay of the coalition's bombing campaign in Yemen for more than four years.

The United States also accused Iran of attacks on four oil tankers anchored in the Gulf of Oman off the Port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on 12 May.