Iranian oil tanker on fire after blast near Saudi port city – report

I guess the Saudis are trying to say that they can play this game too. Except the attacks on the oil tankers blamed on Iran a few months ago were designed in such a way to make sure there would be no oil spill or injury, but this one is likely to include both.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...-fire-after-blast-near-saudi-port-city-report

 

I'm sure that the left media will blame Trump for this.

 

guess they're still sour with Iran over the Houthi attack on their oil refinery...sour enough not to care that this oil spill is on their doorstep

 

The Saudis have refused to comment on the incident and so has the US Central Command, which has merely said it is "aware" of these reports.

Fortunately, the latest reports show there were no injuries and the oil leak has been brought under control so the spill might not cause as much of an issue as it was feared earlier. Still, I hope Iran doesn't just accept this attack without making a big fuss about it. Otherwise, we will likely see a similar attack on our oil installations down the line. And a response to that would require a lot more than just making a fuss!

 

What the hell was an Iranian tanker doing off the coast of Jedda?

 

Probably delivering oil to Egypt or Sudan via the Red Sea.

 

Not if they were off the coast of Jedda.

 

If we're talking about Jeddah, check the map of the Red Sea.

 

I know Jedda, been there several times.. Maybe they were going to the Wadi Feran refinery.. but there no reason to get so close to Jedda.

 

Well, we all know what this attack represents. Iran is on notice, it's a clear as daylight behave or else warning. The mullahs don't not want to get the red card, do they?

 

No one has attacked any Iranian oil installation..

 

60 miles from Jeddah is sailing along the centre of the Red Sea

 

Its about time to see some tit for tat action.
I already thought the Sauds were totaly impotent.

 

Was the Iranian tanker 60 miles from Jedda?

 

Yes

 

On second though, most likely heading for the Suez Cannel.

 

Now the Iranians are claiming Al Qaeda shot the missiles that hit the tanker "at the request of the Saudis".. IMO that's pretty far fetched, Its long way to south Yemen.

https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee/status/1182545453537206272?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1182545453537206272&ref_url=https://www.rt.com/news/470667-iranian-tanker-explosion-jeddah/

 

I checked. You're right.

 

The Wadi Feran Refinery is just inland on the Gulf of Suez... The Suez Canal cannot handle Supertankers. .. Maybe SUMED?

 

There will be a debate within Iran on how to react to this, with certain factions led by the government predictably arguing that Iran should not pin point the blame on the Saudis, while certain other factions will be pushing for the Saudis to be held responsible. Once that debate reaches its conclusion, and there is greater knowledge about what happened, Iran will announce its public position on this attack.

Regardless, my position remains the same: this was done by the Saudis and if Iran doesn't make a fuss about it (including hitting them in a proportional way), that will lead to more incidents of this sort. Iran response should not go overboard, but it should be clear, unmistakable, and proportional (not equal). The range of responses would include, inter alia, hitting at least 2 Saudi oil tankers or hitting the port of Jeddah.

 

Nope Saudi's didn't do it. Its just an Iranian red flag..

 

That would be a stupid over the top response. A better response would be to be the bigger man and call it even but heavily publicize the event and Iran's peaceful reaction The most likely source of the missile strike would be from Sudan IMO. Perhaps they thought that the tanker was Saudi. Do you know which part of the ship was hit, port or starboard?

PS Never heard of "inter alia" but now I know the meaning. Quite impressive for someone whose first language is not English

 

Despite earlier reports, the pictures of the tanker released by Iran don't show substantial damage or any fire. Nor do satellite photos how any smoke. The tanker, however, seems to have changed its direction and is reportedly sailing back towards the Persian Gulf. Based on Iranian reports, two storage rooms had been damaged. At this point, despite earlier reports by Iranian news agencies, Iran has not officially confirmed the cause of the incident, but it has confirmed that the tanker suffered an explosion. The totality of circumstances suggest to me that Iran will not be making a big deal out of this, which (unless Iran really doesn't believe it was an act by the Saudis), to me is a mistake. The same way I believe it would be a mistake for Iran to follow the line you suggest.

 

Could it have been sabotage and not two missile strikes?

 

I don't know, but the damage was apparently to the storage areas which suggest it wasn't a mine or anything hitting from the water.