Japan's Mitsui OSK Lines said the M. Star oil tanker exploded on July 29 near the Strait of Hormuz, dominated by Iran.
The UAE Coast Guard has concluded that an explosion that damaged the
Japanese tanker was the result of a speedboat filled with explosives.
Officials said the speedboat rammed into the M. Star tanker on July 29 in the
Strait of Hormuz in the territorial waters of Oman.
"After the tanker had anchored 12 nautical miles off the Port of
Fujairah, UAE explosives experts who collected and examined samples found a
dent on the starboard side above the water line and remains of home-made
explosives on the hull," a UAE Coast Guard official said. "Probably the
tanker had encountered a terrorist attack from a boat loaded with
explosives."
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Officials said the investigation into the M.Star explosion included the
U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet. They said M.Star was repaired in the UAE and left
Fujairah on Aug. 6.
M.Star did not report any casualties or oil spilled from the explosion,
which took place near the coast of Iran. In a statement, an Al Qaida group claimed
responsibility, but the statement was dismissed by Japan and Gulf Cooperation Council
sources.
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