INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
May 12 bore the hallmarks of a "sophisticated and coordinated operation," most likely by a state actor.In a document on the briefing to
Security Council members, the UAE, joined by Norway and Saudi Arabia, did not say who it believed was behind the attacks and did not mention
Iran, which has been accused by the United States of being directly responsible.The attacks required expert navigation of fast boats and
trained divers who likely placed limpet mines with a high degree of precision on the vessels under the waterline to incapacitate but not
sink them, according to the preliminary findings of the countries' joint investigation."While investigations are still ongoing, these facts
are strong indications that the four attacks were part of a sophisticated and coordinated operation carried out by an actor with significant
operational capacity, most likely a state actor," the three countries said in the document.They believe it was the work of several teams of
operatives, which coordinated the timed detonation of all four explosive charges within less than an hour.The May 12 attacks targeted two
Saudi tankers, an Emirati vessel and a Norwegian tanker, causing no casualties but fuelling tensions between the United States and Iran
during weeks of escalating rhetoric.US national security adviser John Bolton said on May 29 that the attacks were the work of "naval mines
almost certainly from Iran." Tehran denied the accusations.A few days earlier in May, at the Pentagon, US Rear Admiral Michael Gilday
accused Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) of being directly responsible for the attacks.While the briefing document did not
mention Iran, a Saudi diplomat in New York laid the blame squarely on the country."We believe that the responsibility for this action lies
We have no hesitation in making this statement," said the Saudi ambassador to the United Nations, Abdallah Y
Al-Mouallimi.Threat to global energy suppliesUS President Donald Trump's administration, acting on concerns of a potential attack by Iran on
US interests, has deployed 1,500 more troops to the Middle East, accelerated the movement of an aircraft carrier strike group to the region
and sent bombers and additional Patriot missiles.The tanker attacks occurred off the UAE emirate of Fujairah, which lies just outside the
Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil and gas shipping route that separates the Gulf Arab states - allies of the United States - and Iran.The
three countries said the attacks endangered commercial navigation and the security of global energy supplies
They planned to share the findings of their probe with the London-based International Maritime Organization.In the weeks before the attacks,
the Trump administration hardened its policy against Iran by fully reimposing sanctions on Iranian oil exports and designating the IRGC as a
foreign terrorist organization.Trump reiterated this week that he wants to sit down with Iran's leaders to negotiate a new deal, a year
after Washington pulled out of an accord between Iran and global powers to curb Tehran's nuclear program in return for lifting international
sanctions.Irani Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that Tehran would not be "deceived" by Trump's offer.(This story has
not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
