The reported incident comes amid a growing list of back-and-forth accusations by Iran and israel of attacks on one another's vessels throughout the Middle East.
Iranian general cargo ship the Saviz has been attacked in the Red Sea, sources told Saudi-owned, Dubai-based television news channel Al Arabiya on Tuesday.
The merchant ship, which US, Israeli, and Saudi officials and media have previously claimed may be a covert Revolutionary Guard forward base or intelligence-gathering vessel, was reportedly struck by a missile.
Marine Traffic lists the general cargo ship as “out of range,” with its position as of earlier today shown to be in the southern Red Sea, approximately equidistant to Eritrea and Yemen. Its last check-in was reported at 11:59 UTC on 29 September 2020.
Some Arab media say that the ship may have suffered “great damage.” Scattered reports coming out of israel claim it may have been hit by an Israeli missile. Neither Iran nor Israel have officially commented on the incident. Anonymous US officials speaking to Reuters denied any role in the incident.
Roiling Maritime Tensions
Saudi and US officials have repeatedly accused Iran of providing military support to Yemen's Houthi militia, who have been fighting against a Saudi-led coalition since 2015. Iran has praised the Houthis for their struggle, but denied claims that it provides material assistance to the group, citing the coalition's…
