Iran boards cargo ship inside territorial waters

A Maersk cargo vessel seized Tuesday morning within Iranian waters by that government’s military was flagged from the Marshall Islands.

Early reports by Saudi-owned television channel Al Arabiya said the ship was American, prompting a 1 percent jump in oil prices, according to Bloomberg Business. Prices settled as news of the report’s inaccuracy spread.

The shipping vessel was fired at by Iranian patrol boats and boarded after its captain refused an order to move deeper into the Islamic Republic’s waters, according to the report. An army official reported the U.S. sent a destroyer and aircraft to monitor the ship, although no Americans were on board.

While the reason for seizure of the vessel is unclear, a spokesman for the vessel’s manager, Rickmers Ship Management, said the company is trying to re-establish contact with the ship.

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