Ship seized near UAE, cargo vessel sinks as Iran escalates Hormuz standoff

A ship anchored off the UAE coast was seized by unauthorized personnel and escorted toward Iran on Thursday, while an Indian-flagged cargo vessel sank after an attack near Oman, as Tehran escalated its campaign to assert sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.

The back-to-back maritime incidents highlight the mounting risk to global energy markets — one-fifth of the world's petroleum supply transits the strait — and could push fuel costs higher for consumers across Southern California as U.S.-Iran negotiations remain unresolved.

The seizure occurred approximately 38 nautical miles (70 kilometers) northeast of the UAE's Fujairah port, according to The Korea Times. Unauthorized personnel boarded the vessel while it was anchored before escorting it toward Iranian waters. Iran has claimed the legal right to detain oil tankers it connects to U.S.-aligned shipping interests and is demanding reparations and formal recognition of its sovereignty over the waterway as conditions for any new talks.

Hours later, the Indian-flagged cargo ship Haji Ali sank after an attack ignited a fire aboard the vessel as it traveled from Somalia to the UAE port of Sharjah, The Korea Times reported. The Oman coast guard rescued all 14 Indian crew members aboard.

Iran's senior Vice President Mohammadreza Aref was blunt about Tehran's position. "It has always been our property," Aref said of the strait, according to the report. Iranian officials have framed control of the waterway as a non-negotiable point in any settlement to end the broader conflict with the United States.

Adm. Brad Cooper, the top U.S. Middle East military commander, said Iranian rhetoric was already rattling the global shipping industry. "Their voice is very loud, and the threats are clearly heard by the merchant industry and the insurance industry," Cooper said, according to The Korea Times. The U.S. recently fired on Iranian oil tankers attempting to breach an existing blockade, the report said.

The incidents unfolded hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a visit to the UAE, a development that drew attention from regional analysts. "It's amazing, it's the deepest cooperation we've ever had … that during a war, Israel is defending an Arab state against Iran. It shows how complicated the Middle East is," said Yoel Guzansky, a senior researcher at the Institute of National Security Studies, according to The Korea Times. Guzansky noted the UAE's carefully calibrated stance: "They're trying to differentiate between security cooperation and cooperating with this government," he said. Separately, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed during a Beijing meeting that the strait must remain open; Chinese ships began transiting the waterway under new Iranian protocols, the report said.

No resolution to the standoff appeared imminent Thursday, with Iran continuing to press its claim over one of the world's most critical oil transit routes while multiparty diplomatic efforts remained fragile.