Middle East/North Africa

Iranian investigator places blame for attack on container ship on Israel

An Iranian investigator on Saturday said that Israel was to blame for an attack on an Iranian container ship.

The investigator was quoted in a state media outlet putting the blame on Israel for an attack on the container ship Shahr-e Kord in which no one was injured, Reuters reported.

“Considering the geographical location and the way the ship was targeted, one of the strong possibilities is that this terrorist operation was carried out by the Zionist regime [Israel],” the investigator said.

The ship was hit by an explosive device, but it caused only a small fire and no injuries or deaths.

The explosive hitting the Iranian ship came two weeks after Israel blamed Iran for an explosive device hitting its ship MV Helios Ray, according to Reuters.

Iran’s shipping company wants to find out through legal action who attacked the vessel, while a spokesman for the Iranian foreign ministry said the explosive was “in clear violation of international law.”

The attacks on both ships came after Vice President Harris and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed ensuring Israel’s security in regard to Iran.