‘Rejected as baseless’: Iran denies US claims that it targeted chemical tanker in Indian Ocean

Iran, on Monday, denied the claims made by the US that an Iranian drone launched from the country struck a chemical tanker in the Indian Ocean. The Pentagon had said that the tanker was hit by a one-way attack drone fired by Iran. The chemical tanker Japanese-owned, Liberia-flagged and Netherlands-operated Chem Pluto ship was hit 200 nautical miles off the Indian coast.

"These repetitive accusations are rejected as baseless," Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said at a briefing. Kanaani also stated that the US should instead face accusations for its role in Israel's war in Gaza.

Following the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza, the Iranian navy has taken delivery of cruise missiles with a range of 1,000 km (621 miles) as well as reconnaissance helicopters, as per state media reports. The attack on the chemical tanker highlights the escalating regional tensions and new risks to shipping lanes.

There were no casualties as a result of the attack and a brief fire on board the tanker was extinguished.

The Pentagon had earlier, in its statement, said that the attack on the chemical tanker was the seventh attack by Iran on commercial shipping since 2021. 

The Iranian government and its allied militant forces in Yemen have publicly criticized the Israeli government for its military operation in Gaza. 

(With Reuters inputs)

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