Mike Pompeo: 'It is the assessment of the United States government that the Islamic Republic of Iran is responsible for the attacks that occurred in the Gulf of Oman'

Trump administration providing ‘false’ information about Gulf of Oman attack, says Japanese tanker owner

Chief executive of Japanese company operating Kokuka Courageous says 'flying objects' were cause of damage to vessel

Chris Riotta
New York
@chrisriotta
Friday 14 June 2019 17:53
0 comments

The owner of the Japanese tanker attacked on Thursday said US reports have provided “false” information about what happened in the Gulf of Oman.

The ship operator said “flying objects” that may have been bullets were the cause of damage to the vessel, rather than mines used by Iranian forces, as the US has suggested.

Yutaka Katada, chief executive of the Japanese company operating the ship called Kokuka Courageous, one of two vessels attacked near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, said the damage could not have been caused by mines or torpedos that are shot underwater, since the damage was reportedly above the ship’s waterline.

“It seems that something flew towards them. That created the hole, is the report I’ve received,” Mr Katada said at a press conference in Tokyo on Friday, the Financial Times reported. Mr Katada also described reports of a mine attack as "false" according to several outlets in attendance at the press conference.

Donald Trump’s administration has meanwhile insisted the attacks were carried out by Iran, which has denied having any involvement in either of the two incidents.

The US released video shortly after that it said showed Iranian Revolutionary Guard officials removing what was likely an unexploded limpet mine from the Kokuka Courageous. The US also said the ship was abandoned after an “initial explosion.”

The White House has singled out the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in recent months under Mr Trump, taking the rare step of classifying a foreign government entity as a terror group.

The Kokuka Courageous and another Norwegian-operated vessel were ablaze for hours in the Gulf on Thursday. The owner's of the other vessel, the Front Altair, have not yet provided an explanation of what they believe to be the cause of the damage.

The entire 21-person crew evacuated the Kokuka Courageous. Sailors reported seeing the “flying objects” from the vessel before the incident occurred, according to Mr Katada.

Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events

The White House did not respond to requests for comment.

Comments

Share your thoughts and debate the big issues

Learn more

Delete Comment

Are you sure you want to delete this comment?

Report Comment

Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate?

Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

  • You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully
  • Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable
  • Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties
  • We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification

You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.

Create a commenting name to join the debate

Create a commenting name to join the debate

  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Most liked

There are no Independent Premium comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts

Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

  • You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully
  • Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable
  • Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties
  • We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification

You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.

Create a commenting name to join the debate

Create a commenting name to join the debate

  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Most liked

There are no comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts