A PIRATE attack on a containership at the north end of the Strait of Hormuz has been deterred in a live fire incident involving private shipboard armed guards, Bloomberg reports.
According to the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) the attack by three boats on the 18,830-dwt vessel at the northern-most area of the Gulf of Oman is the closest ever attack on this area.
The strait carries 20 per cent of the world's oil, and used by tankers from Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
The EU Naval Force declined to name the vessel or record the attack as "gun fire was not exchanged". But the incident marks a significant move deeper into the northern most Gulf of Oman with two attacks since January, said IMB's London manager in London Cyrus Mody.
Britain has stationed the 8,000-ton destroyer HMS Daring to patrol the strait between Oman and Iran in response to Iranian threats to close the strait after western countries placed an embargo on its oil exports.