Two tankers 'hit by torpedo' in Gulf of Oman attacks amid simmering US, Iran tensions
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Two oil tankers have been attacked in the strategically sensitive Gulf of Oman amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran.

The ships may have been struck by a torpedo, according to some reports.

The latest incident comes after Washington alleged Tehran used mines to attack four oil tankers off the nearby Emirati port of Fujairah last month, a claim denied by Iran.

As many as 44 crew members have been rescued this morning, Iran said, from the two ships were involved the Kokuka Courageous and the Front Altair.

They have been taken to an Iranian port, according to state TV.

''Forty-four sailors from the two foreign oil tankers which had an accident this morning in the Sea of Oman were saved from the water by the (navy) rescue unit of Hormozgan province and transferred to the port of Bandar-e-Jask," IRNA said.

Crude oil prices rose on news of the attacks.

The Kokuka Courageous was carrying methanol and the Front Altair, a petrochemical feedstock.

The first alert was put out by United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a maritime safety group run by the British Navy.

Images posted on Twitter showed one of the burning tankers following the incident.

The incident happened some 25 miles off the Iranian coast. The U.S. Navy’s Bahrain-based 5th Fleet was also assisting.

The timing of Thursday’s reported attack was especially sensitive as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was visiting Iran on a high-stakes diplomacy mission.