The US military released a video on Friday that it says shows Iran’s Revolutionary Guard removing an unexploded mine from one of the oil tankers targeted near the Strait of Hormuz.
It suggested Iran had sought to remove evidence of its involvement from the scene.
US Central Command also released photographs showing the apparent mine, which attaches to the side of a ship magnetically.
Release of the classified black-and-white images showed US determination to convince the international community that Iran was responsible for Thursday’s attacks on the Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous, and the Norwegian-owned Front Altair.
Just in: Pentagon video of what it says is an Iranian boat removing an unexploded mine from one of the attacked oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman. pic.twitter.com/XSxIPcyV6Q
— Philip Crowther (@PhilipinDC) June 14, 2019
However, the Japanese operator of Kokuka Courageous said the crew saw “flying objects” just before the attack, suggesting the tanker was damaged by something other than mines. Yutaka Katada, the company president, said reports of a mine attack were “false”.
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