State sponsor behind May tanker attacks, says UAE minister

State sponsor behind May tanker attacks, says UAE minister
State sponsor behind May tanker attacks, says UAE minister

The UAE's foreign minister said on Saturday a "state sponsor" was involved in a May 12 attack on oil tankers in the Gulf, but did not name any particular country.

He did not mention attacks on twoother tankers this week in the same area. The United States has said Iran wasinvolved in both the May and the June incidents – accusations dismissed byTehran.

"Our conclusion is this has onlybeen possible by a state-sponsored attack," Al Nahyan told reporters aftermeeting his Cypriot counterpart in Nicosia, referring to the May attack.

"We haven't named the state, butwe hope that we can further work with our friends and partners in preventingsuch escalations from moving forward," he added.

Earlier on Saturday, Arabiya TV'sTwitter account quoted Al Nahyan as saying Iran's fingerprints were clear onthe May 12 attacks. The tweet later disappeared from Twitter and Arabiya TV didnot immediately comment on the reason.

The May 12 attacks targeted two Sauditankers, an Emirati vessel and a Norwegian tanker, causing no casualties butfueling tensions between the United States and Iran during weeks of escalatingrhetoric. 

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