OSLO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Norway's maritime authority on Thursday called on its ships to stay well clear of Iranian waters after two oil tankers were hit in the Sea of Oman near Iran.
"Based on today's incidents, even though the background for the attacks is not completely clear, the Norwegian Maritime Authority (NMA) advices all ships to keep a safe distance from Iranian waters," the agency said in a statement.
The oil tanker Front Altair, registered in the Marshall Islands and owned by shipping company Frontline Ltd. that is controlled by Norwegian-born magnate John Fredriksen, was attacked and there were reportedly three detonations on board the ship, the NMA said.
A Frontline representative rejected earlier reports that the Front Altair had sunk, according to Norwegian newspaper VG.
A second tanker, the Panamanian-flagged Kokuka Courageous, has reportedly also been attacked in the same area, the NMA said.
The 44 crew members of the two oil tankers that were hit in the Sea of Oman on Thursday morning were transferred to the Iranian port city of Jask, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported.
The rescuers of Iran's coastal province of Hormozgan found the crews and took them to Jask, a city of Hormozgan, IRNA quoted a source as saying.
Last month, four commercial vessels suffered similar sabotage off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
