Iranian boats fire at oil tanker in Arab Gulf

Five Iranian boats fired shots across the bow of a Singapore-flagged oil tanker in the Arab Gulf Thursday, causing it to flee to a nearby port in the United Arab Emirates, Fox News reported.

The vessel was attacked at sea while heading to the UAE port of Fujairah. The ship is now docked at the UAE port of Jebel Ali and is safe, with no injuries to the crew.

Alpine Eternity was in the Arab Gulf headed for the Strait of Hormuz on an outbound track when it was approached by 5 Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy patrol craft and ordered into Iranian waters.

When Alpine Eternity refused, the Iranians fired warning shots and then attempted to disable the cargo ship by firing at the ship's rudder. Alpine Eternity then turned toward UAE territorial waters and was pursued by the five Iranian patrol boats.

Iran appeared to be trying to intercept the ship in order to settle a legal dispute, a US official said.

UAE Navy patrol boats answered a distress call from Alpine Eternity and raced out to Alpine Eternity's position causing the Iranian vessels to reverse course and vacate the area.