All posts tagged: Oman

Weather tracker: Flash flooding in Oman and record temperatures in Western Australia | Environment

Weather tracker: Flash flooding in Oman and record temperatures in Western Australia | Environment

Abnormally high rainfall hit Oman and the United Arab Emirates on Monday, with heavy downpours and thunderstorms rolling in from the north-east. The two countries are among the driest in the world, with large parts of both typically receiving less than 100mm of rainfall each year. However, on Monday 50-100mm of rainfall was widely reported across eastern UAE and northern Oman, with a highest total of 140mm in Dibba, a city in the far north of Oman that lies on its border with the UAE. Some thunderstorms were accompanied by hail, with a particularly heavy shower in Abu Dhabi leaving the streets blanketed in hailstones, some of which were almost the size of golf balls. Flooding was widespread, with flash flooding proving particularly dangerous in Oman’s mountainous regions. More than 100 people had to be rescued, many from stranded vehicles, while four fatalities were confirmed. Three stages of the Tour of Oman cycling race were curtailed due to landslides on some climbs. The UAE was less badly affected, but some schools were closed, while an …

Saudi Arabia leave it late to beat Oman in Asian Cup

Saudi Arabia leave it late to beat Oman in Asian Cup

DOHA :Saudi Arabia came from behind to beat Oman 2-1 in their Asian Cup Group F opener on Tuesday at a packed Khalifa International Stadium with Ali Al-Bulayhi’s winner arriving in the sixth minute of stoppage time after a VAR intervention. With the score tied at 1-1, Al-Bulayhi scored with a close-range header from a set piece and although the linesman’s flag immediately went up for offside, VAR awarded Roberto Mancini’s side the goal. “The goal is a gift to the Saudi people. This is what great players do,” said Al-Bulayhi, who celebrated the dramatic winner in trademark fashion by inflating a green balloon near the corner flag. The victory takes Saudi Arabia level on three points with Thailand, who beat Kyrgyzstan 2-0 in the other Group F encounter earlier in the day when Supachai Chaided scored either side of halftime. Oman’s opener in the 14th minute came against the run of play when the Saudis took a poor corner and as their opponents countered at speed, defender Hassan Al-Tambakti clipped Muhsen Al-Ghassani just as …

Iranian Navy Says It Seized an Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Oman

Iranian Navy Says It Seized an Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Oman

Iran’s navy said it had seized a tanker loaded with crude oil off the coast of Oman on Thursday, apparently in retaliation for the United States confiscating oil from the same ship last year. A British government maritime agency said the ship was reportedly boarded by four or five armed people wearing uniforms and black masks. Iranian forces said the boarders arrived by helicopter, and released video that they said showed the men descending from a craft hovering above the ship’s deck. The U.S. government diverted the same vessel last year and confiscated its cargo, Iranian oil that was being transported in violation of American sanctions. The ship, then called the Suez Rajan, was later renamed the St. Nikolas. The Iranian Navy claimed on Thursday in a statement that the tanker “stole Iran’s oil under the order of the U.S. and transported it to American shores,” and said it had impounded the ship with an order from the Iranian judiciary. Iran claimed that the ship was American, but the St. Nikolas is registered in the …

Iran seizes oil tanker with links to US in Gulf of Oman | Iran

Iran seizes oil tanker with links to US in Gulf of Oman | Iran

The Iranian navy has seized a US-linked oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman as part of a long-running dispute with the US over an American court order a year ago that seized Iranian oil on the tanker and unloaded the cargo in Texas. Official Iranian news agencies said on Wednesday that the tanker had been taken on the authority of an Iranian court order, but the news will add to the growing tensions about freedom of navigation in the region as a result of repeated Houthi rebel attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. The Houthis say their attacks are designed to disrupt the Israeli economy and the naval forces protecting Israel, primarily the US’s, as a result of the war in Gaza. A punitive joint US-UK attack on Houthi military installations in Yemen, including the port of Hodeidah, seems imminent after Houthi leaders vowed on Thursday to defy a UN security resolution passed the previous day demanding an end to the attacks on commercial shipping. A vessel tracking service showing the route of …

Iran seizes Greek tanker, escalating tensions with West – POLITICO

Iran seizes Greek tanker, escalating tensions with West – POLITICO

Iran’s navy on Thursday boarded and seized a Greek-operated oil tanker, the St. Nikolas, off the coast of Oman. The high seas seizure heightens tensions with the West, not far from where Iran-backed Houthi rebels have been attacking merchant ships and facing off with American and British naval vessels in the Red Sea. The tanker was transiting through the Strait of Hormuz en route to Turkey when the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported hearing “unknown voices” on board. Iranian news agency IRNA later confirmed its navy had seized the ship. The St. Nikolas, operated by Greek shipping venture Empire Navigation, was previously known as the Suez Rajan. It was at the center of a dispute between Washington and Tehran in April last year after U.S. authorities seized the ship, loaded with 1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil. The oil was ultimately ordered to be discharged in Houston by the U.S. Department of Justice. The Greek company pleaded guilty to smuggling sanctioned Iranian oil in September and paid a $2.4 million fine. Empire Navigation …

Iran seizes oil tanker off Oman in dispute with US | Shipping News

Iran seizes oil tanker off Oman in dispute with US | Shipping News

The state-run IRNA news agency published a story acknowledging the seizure of an oil tanker by Iran’s navy. Iran has seized a tanker with Iraqi crude destined for Turkey in retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its oil by the United States, Iranian state media reported, a move likely to stoke regional tensions. “The Navy of the Islamic Republic of Iran seized an American oil tanker in the waters of the Gulf of Oman in accordance with a court order,” the state-run IRNA news agency said. “After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran’s Navy”, the navy said, as cited by the Iranian news agency Fars. The US condemned what it called an “unlawful seizure” and demanded Iran “immediately release the ship and its crew”. The seizure comes after weeks of attacks by Yemen’s Iranian-aligned Houthis on vessels in the Red Sea. The Houthi rebels say they are carrying out the attacks in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid …

Iran’s Navy Seizes Oil Tanker in Gulf of Oman That Was at the Center of a Major US-Iran Crisis

Iran’s Navy Seizes Oil Tanker in Gulf of Oman That Was at the Center of a Major US-Iran Crisis

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s navy seized an oil tanker on Thursday in the Gulf of Oman that once was at the center of a major crisis between Tehran and Washington, officials said, a seizure that further escalates tensions in the Mideast waterways. The vessel was once known as the Suez Rajan and was involved in a yearlong dispute that ultimately saw the U.S. Justice Department seize 1 million barrels of Iranian crude oil on it. Iran’s state-run television acknowledged the seizure late Thursday afternoon, hours after armed men boarded it. “The violating oil tanker Suez Rajan … stole Iranian oil by leading it to the Americans and delivered it to the Americans,” state TV said. It said Iran’s navy, rather than its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, conducted the seizure. Past tense incidents at sea have largely involved the Guard. Political Cartoons The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Middle East, said Thursday’s seizure began early in the morning in the waters between Oman and Iran …

Oman is turning to Twitter to help govern

Oman is turning to Twitter to help govern

Research conducted by the Dubai School of Government into the Arab Spring of 2010-11 found that mass protests on the ground were often preceded by revolutionary conversations online, and that social media such as Twitter played a central role in shaping the political events. Having studied changes in internet traffic and social media use, they concluded that social media during the Arab Spring played a critical role in “mobilisation, empowerment, shaping opinions, and influencing change”. In some cases, such as in Dubai, the government used social media to engage citizens and encourage participation in institutional rather than revolutionary change. In other cases, such as in Egypt, governments blocked access to websites used by protesters, or even shut down access to the entire internet. Following the Arab Spring, citizens of the Persian Gulf state of Oman became aware of Twitter’s potential and decided to adopt it as a platform for addressing social problems, rather than instigating revolutions. For example, unemployment for young people even with degrees is a problem in Oman, as it is in other …