A drone flying over a ship in the Gulf of Oman

British Commercial Maritime Operations said on Friday it was aware of a drone flying over a ship in the Gulf of Oman this morning, about 50 nautical miles southwest of Muscat.

The authority added on its site web that the ship and its crew are safe.

And there was an attack on an oil tanker off the coast of the Sultanate of Oman on Tuesday, which US Central Command said was carried out using an Iranian-made drone, adding that a multilateral naval operation led by a frigate of the British Royal Navy has addressed the situation in the region.

An Israeli official blamed Iran for the attack on the Zircon Pacific tanker, operated by the Israeli-run Eastern Pacific Shipping Company. The company said the attack caused minor damage to the tanker’s hull, causing no injuries or spilling its diesel cargo.

A White House official said in earlier that Washington was “confident that Iran likely carried out” the attack using a drone.

In recent years, Gulf waters have witnessed attacks on tankers, in a time of heightened tensions with Iran. In July 2021, an attack believed to be carried out by a drone occurred on an oil product tanker operating off the coast of Oman, and Iran has rejected allegations that it was behind the attack.