A tanker anchored about 30 nautical miles southeast of Mubarak Al Kabeer in Kuwait has been struck in what appears to be a widening of attacks on commercial shipping in the Gulf, according to an alert from the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
UKMTO said the master reported witnessing and hearing a large explosion on the port side and then seeing a small craft leaving the area. Maritime security firm Vanguard Tech identified the vessel as the suezmax tanker Sonangol Namibe.
Oil was reported on the water from the cargo tank, raising the likelihood of environmental impact, though no fires were reported and the crew were said to be safe. Mubarak Al Kabeer lies in the upper Arabian Gulf, around 750–800 km from the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting the geographic scope of incidents is expanding beyond the chokepoint and into broader Gulf waters.
The latest incident comes on top of five other events reported in the past 24 hours. Seatrade Maritime News previously reported that the first container ship hit in the conflict was Safeen Prestige, struck about 2 nm off Oman while transiting eastbound, with a fire above the waterline in the engine room that forced the crew to abandon ship.
A second container ship, MSC Grace, reported seeing a splash from an unknown projectile near the vessel around 20 nm west of Dubai, with no damage. Two incidents were reported off Fujairah: the Panama-flagged bulk carrier Gold Oak was struck by an unknown projectile that damaged steel plating; and the Marshall Islands-flagged VLCC Libra Trader suffered minor funnel damage after a loud blast, with projectile debris found on deck. Another bulker, Pelagia, reported a loud explosion close to the vessel about 137 nm east of Muscat, Oman; the ship and crew were safe.
