Israeli ship owner denies vessel hit in attack in Gulf of Oman

Belgian frigate sent to site of Tuesday's reported incident

A commercial vessel Hyperion Ray is docked in the port of Koper, Slovenia October 24, 2020. Reuters

An Israeli commercial ship incurred no damage after reports that Iranian forces had fired a missile at the vessel in the Gulf of Oman.

A short statement from Ray Shipping, an Israeli company that owns the Hyperion Ray, played down reports of an attack, but gave no details on the nature of any incident.

"The MV Hyperion Ray incurred no damage and is continuing at full speed on its original voyage," it said.

On Tuesday evening, the Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen television channel reported that the Bahamas-flagged ship had come under fire.

Israeli media sources reported the same incident had occurred, prompting speculation that Iran had decided to take revenge for the sabotage of its primary nuclear site, Natanz, which was hit by an unexplained explosion on Sunday.

On February 28, another ship owned by Ray Shipping, the Helios Ray, came under attack in the Gulf of Oman.

Photos of four holes caused by limpet mines were later released by the company. The mines were placed on the ship above the water line, an apparently deliberate effort not to sink the vessel, which was carrying cars to Singapore.

On Wednesday, European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz, a joint mission established by the European Union to preserve freedom of navigation in the strait, tweeted that a Belgian naval vessel, BNS Leopold I, travelled to the area after the reported incident.

The UK's Maritime Trade Organisation, which is linked to the Royal Navy, did not respond to a request for comment after they initially said they were aware of an incident near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday night.