Iran seizes tanker St Nikolas, formerly the Suez Rajan, in Gulf of Oman

Iranian forces seized the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker St Nikolas in the Gulf of Oman on 11 January, according to Al-Monitor and US Naval Forces Central Command. The Greek-owned ship, managed by Empire Navigation, was carrying 145,000 tonnes of crude loaded in Basra, Iraq, for Aliaga in Turkey, with 19 crew aboard. Under its former name, Suez Rajan, the vessel had carried Iranian oil that US authorities confiscated in September 2023, Al-Monitor reports. Iranian state media said the seizure followed a court order in response to what they called US theft of Iranian oil. The US State Department condemned it as an "unlawful seizure of a commercial vessel".

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