Hormuz Strait MOL tanker bombing now linked to terrorists

TERRORISTS are now being blamed for an explosion aboard the MOL's 314,016-ton tanker M Star near the Strait of Hormuz, reports London's Tanker Operator.

"An examination carried out by specialised teams had confirmed that the tanker had been the subject of a terrorist attack," according to the UAE state news agency, quoting an unidentified coastguard source.

"UAE explosives experts who collected and examined samples found a dent on the starboard side above the water line and remains of home-made explosives on the hull," it said.

This statement follows two days after a militant group linked to al Qaeda claimed responsibility. In a statement on a website, the Abdullah Azzam Brigade said they targeted the tanker M Star in what they had hoped would be a dramatic blow to the global economy and oil markets.

"The martyr hero Ayyub Al Tayshan blew himself up in the Japanese oil tanker M Star in the Strait of Hormuz between the UAE and Oman," the said posting.

The report said that the tanker's operator, Japan's Mitsui OSK, claimed earlier that its vessel had come under attack and that it was conducting an investigation into the incident, which put a huge dent in the tanker's hull, but didn't cause any serious casualties among its crew.

According to Lloyd's List this attack has "raised fears of an intensification of risk to shipping across the Middle East."

It also said that doubts had been raised over the validity of Abdullah Azzam Brigades's claims to be a member of al Qaeda and responsibility for the attack on the MOL tanker. The report cited an unidentified security analyst as saying that the group had falsely claimed responsibility for attacks before and dismissed the al Qaeda connection. Another analyst called the group "freelance and not state-sponsored."
(Source:www.schednet.com)