US, Israel to launch joint international probe into tanker attack

The US and Israel have agreed to launch a joint international investigation into the attack on the Israeli-managed Mercer Street tanker off the Omani coast.

According to Spokesperson Ned Price, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid and agreed on the launch of the investigation.

They discussed the attack on Mercer Street, a commercial ship that was peacefully transiting through the north Arabian Sea.

“They agreed to work with the United Kingdom, Romania, and other international partners to investigate the facts, provide support, and consider the appropriate next steps,” Price disclosed in a statement, a copy of which was sent to MEMO.

Following the telephone conversation with Blinken, Lapid tweeted: “We are working together against Iranian terrorism, which poses a threat to all of us, by formulating a real and effective international response.”

He added: “Iran repeatedly errs in understanding our commitment to protecting ourselves and our interests.”

Meanwhile, Lapid also spoke to British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab, stressing: “The need to respond severely to the attack on the ship in which a British citizen was killed.”

“I have instructed the embassies in Washington, London and the UN to work with their interlocutors in government and the relevant delegations in the UN headquarters in New York,” stated Lapid.

READ: UK blames Iran for deadly ship attack