(CNN) – The U.S. military has released new video shot in the aftermath of attacks on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman Thursday.
Officials say the footage shows Iran had a hand in the incident and tried to cover its tracks afterward.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, “The international community condemns Iran’s assault on the freedom of navigation and the targeting of innocent civilians.”
Sec. Pompeo pointed the finger directly at Iran for Thursday’s attack on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman. His comments came just hours before the U.S. military released video that it says shows
Iranian sailors removing an unexploded mine from one of the targeted ships.
One official said the video was recorded by a U.S. military aircraft flying overhead.
The tankers—one carrying oil and another carrying chemicals—were struck as they sailed along a key oil shipping lane.
“Iran promised the world it would interrupt the flow of oil from the Strait of Hormuz,” Pompeo said. “It is now working to execute on that promise.”
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir concurred with Pompeo’s assessment: “We agree with him. Iran has a history of doing this. We’ve seen them attack four tankers recently.”
U.S. defense officials believe Iran removed the unexploded mine in an attempt to cover up their role in the attacks. The brazen removal took place four hours after a U.S. destroyer and aircraft
arrived in the area.
For its part, Iran denied having any involvement in the attacks.
All crew members were evacuated after Thursday’s attacks.
The incident drove up oil prices amid concerns about the security of that key oil shipping route.
Thursday’s attacks followed attacks on four oil tankers in the same region in May.
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