Iran tanker hit by suspected missile strikes near Saudi port

TEHRAN (AFP/AP) – An Iranian oil tanker was hit by suspected missile strikes near the Saudi port of Jeddah on Friday, causing oil to leak into the Red Sea, the ship's owner said.

The National Iranian Tanker Company said in a statement that the hull of the Sabiti was hit by two separate explosions about 100 kilometers (60 miles) off the Saudi coast.

It said the blasts were ''probably caused by missile strikes.''

''All the ship's crew are safe and the ship is stable too,'' said NITC, adding those on board were trying to repair the damage.

The state-owned company said that contrary to reports, ''there is no fire aboard the ship and the ship is completely stable.''

The reported explosion comes after the US has alleged that in past months Iran attacked oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, something denied by Tehran.

The explosion could push tensions between Iran and the US even higher, more than a year after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the nuclear deal and imposed sanctions now crushing Iran's economy.

The latest assault saw Saudi Arabia's vital oil industry come under a drone-andcruise-missile attack, halving the kingdom's output. The US has blamed Iran for the attack, something denied by Tehran. Yemen's Houthi rebels, whom the kingdom is fighting in a years-long war, claimed that assault, though analysts say the missiles used in the attack wouldn't have the range to reach the sites from Yemen.