Targeted Iranian Tanker Plugged as it Heads for Gulf, Iran Says

An undated picture shows the Iranian-owned Sabiti oil tanker sailing in the Red Sea. National Iranian Oil Tanker Company via WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS 

DUBAI, Oct 12 (Reuters) – Leakage of cargo from an Iranian-owned oil tanker apparently hit by missiles in Red Sea waters off Saudi Arabia has been stopped as it heads for the Gulf, the semi-official Iranian news agency Mehr reported on Saturday.

The tanker Sabiti was targeted on Friday, Iranian media reported earlier, an incident that if confirmed will stoke friction in a region rattled by attacks on tankers and oil installations since May.

“The tanker is heading for Persian Gulf waters and we hope it will enter Iranian waters safely,” Mehr quoted an unnamed official as saying. “The cargo leakage has stopped.”