Iranian state media say Iran's navy has taken control of an oil tanker off Oman on a "court order." The incident comes amid a spate of attacks on ships in the region by various actors. Iran's navy on Thursday seized an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, an action that is likely to further raise already high tensions in maritime regions of the Middle East. The seized ship, identified by private intelligence firm Ambrey as the Marshall Islands-flagged St. Nikolas, was once, under the name of Suez Rajan, at the center of a long-running dispute between Washington and Tehran. The row culminated in the US Justice Department seizing a million barrels of sanctioned Iranian crude oil that were aboard it last year. Iranian state media said the St. Nikolas had been seized in retaliation for what it called the "theft" of Tehran's oil.  The incident comes following multiple attacks by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen on ships in the Red Sea in recent weeks that have prompted US and British officials to warn of potential military consequences. What are the circumstances of the seizure? The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a body run by the British military, said the seizure took place in the early hours of Thursday morning near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which a fifth of globally traded oil transits. Ambrey said "four to five armed persons" boarded the ship, which has a crew of 18 Filipinos and one Greek national. Since the collapse of Iran's 2015 nuclear deal, several ships have been seized by Tehran in waters around the strait. The tanker's Greece-based management company, Empire Navigation, told news agency AFP in a statement that the vessel had been transporting 145,000 metric tons of crude oil from Basra, Iraq, to Aliaga in Turkey.   State-run Iranian news agency IRNA, quoting the Iranian navy's public relations office, said the ship was now "being transferred to the ports of the Islamic republic for delivery to the judicial authorities." Tit-for-tat measures Iran already retaliated last year to the seizure of Suez Rajan's oil by taking over two tankers — the Marshall Islands-flagged Advantage Sweet as it sailed toward the United States in the Gulf of Oman, and then the Greek-owned Niovi, as it traveled from Dubai to Fujairah, in the UAE.  The country is under US sanctions, reimposed after Washington's 2018 withdrawal from the landmark nuclear deal.

After bringing the World Cup to the Gulf for the first time, the gulf on the pitch proved too big for Qatar, whose exit from their own tournament was sealed on Friday. But coach Felix Sanchez hopes it's just the start. With the clock running down, the Qatari fans began their slow walk out of Al Thumama Stadium as their team fell 3-1 further behind to Senegal, on course for a second straight defeat which all but eliminated them from their own tournament. It had become a familiar sight at this World Cup. Unlike the passion that accompanied the singing of their national anthem, there was no final cry to rouse the players. Rather, the acceptance that Qatar are only playing at this level because they won the hosting rights. Technically, it wasn't quite over; an unlikely victory over the Netherlands by a high enough score combined with other results could still theoretically have seen them qualify – but even that purely mathematical hope was dashed hours later when a 1-1 draw between the Dutch and Ecuador put qualification definitely out of Qatar's reach. While the Maroons tried to force their way back into the game against the Senegalese, the remaining Qataris already sensed that, watching on emotionlessly and seemingly content to have simply witnessed the World Cup at close quarters. Sanchez: 'We're not at the same level' "We are aware of how tough this competition is," admitted Spanish head coach Felix Sanchez. "We wanted to go far but we have limited resources. We haven't played at the same level as the other teams." Many might dispute the "limited resources" claim. This is, after all, a country which spent an estimated $220 billion preparing for this tournament. Not just on physical infrastructure, but on building a national team from scratch, too. Qatar's legendary investments in its football infrastructure through the Aspire Academy has become a case study for many countries looking to grow the sport; Qatar's 26-man squad featured players from eight different foreign nations, and the team won the 2019 Asian Cup. The vast majority play for Qatari champions Al-Sadd and last season's runners-up Al-Duhail, but any hope that familiarity from club level would help overcome technical deficiencies proved unfounded. It takes more than money to build a national football culture, and there will be no sense of national anger at the team's early exit. "We wanted to host a good competition," said Sanchez, revealing the extent of his team's ambitions. "And I think we've met those expectations." What next for Qatar's football? Things could yet get worse for Qatar in their final game, with the Netherlands still in need of a point to progress, and likely three to win the group. But for Sanchez, who has been building the country's football from the youth level to the senior team for almost a decade, the end of the World Cup does not mean the end of football in Qatar. He believes that the investments will pay off. "This country has a long-term goal," he insisted. "The World Cup will finish but football will continue here. We will gain more experience and be able to play more competitions like this. It is our first World Cup. If we could take part again it would be great." Qatar's progress in football would be judged on their ability to defend their Asian title and qualify for the next World Cup. Anything other than that would be lowering the bar on their already low expectations. Until then, attention turns to the teams that are here for business. Qatar's World Cup won't  be dampened by the early exit of the hosts. The show will go on.

The United States and its Arab allies in the Gulf accused Iran Wednesday of causing a nuclear crisis and destabilizing the Middle East with ballistic missiles and drones.   The warning came in a joint statement issued after a meeting of the US and Gulf Cooperation Council working group on Iran, which was held in Saudi Arabia.   "All participants urged the new Iranian administration to seize the current diplomatic opportunity" stemming from the resumption of talks in Vienna aimed at salvaging the Iranian nuclear accord, and "prevent conflict and crisis," the statement said.   These indirect talks between the US and Iran were suspended after Iran elected a new president in June and are now scheduled to resume late this month.   They are aimed at resurrecting the 2015 multinational accord aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.   The US under then president Donald Trump pulled out of the accord in 2018, and in response Iran has abandoned many of the commitments it made under that agreement to curb its nuclear program.   "Iran has taken steps for which it has no civilian need but that would be important to a nuclear weapons program," said the statement from representatives of the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.   These countries also condemned what they called "a range of aggressive and dangerous Iranian policies including the proliferation and direct use of advanced ballistic missiles" and drones.   "Iran's support to armed militias across the region and its ballistic missile program pose a clear threat to regional security and stability," the statement said.   Some Gulf countries such as Qatar and Oman are often seen as channels for the US to communicate with Iran.   Saudi Arabia, a Sunni monarchy fiercely opposed to Shiite Iran, has also recently undertaken a quiet but noticeable dialogue with its neighbor under the auspices of Iraq.   These Gulf countries "briefed" Washington on "their efforts to build effective diplomatic channels with Iran" in order to ease tensions, albeit with the support of American military dissuasion.   "The US and GCC member states stressed that these diplomatic efforts will not succeed if Iran continues to provoke a nuclear crisis," the statement concluded. Source: AFP/BSS AH