DUBAI: A vessel may have been boarded by an unidentified party close to the vital Strait of Hormuz, the British military warned on Saturday.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations notice provided no information regarding the boarding in the Gulf of Oman near the port city of Fujairah, which is home to the Emiratis.
The incident occurs at a time when tensions between the West and Iran are at an all-time high, especially in light of the apparent Israeli strike on the Iranian Consulate in Syria.

While traveling to India, the Portuguese ship carrying 20 Filipinos was taken over by Iranian commercial forces.

Iran did not immediately disclose that it had seized any vessels, and state media did not report on the incident. However, amid continued tensions with the West over its quickly progressing nuclear program, Iran has engaged in a series of ship seizures and attacks on vessels since 2019.
The Strait of Hormuz, the small mouth of the Arabian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes, is close to the Gulf of Oman. On the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates, Fujairah is a major port for ships arriving to pick up supplies, swap out personnel, or take on fresh oil cargo.
Many explosions and hijackings have occurred in the waters off Fujairah since 2019. The United States Navy accuses Iran of limpet mine attacks on vessels that damaged tankers.