The British government officially accused Iran of attempting to block the path of a British oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.

On Thursday, July 11, a spokesperson for the British government issued a statement saying: “In violation of the international law, three Iranian boats tried to block the path of a British commercial ship, British Heritage, through the strait of Hormuz.

The statement goes on to say that the British Navy was forced to intervene and send a frigate to support the oil tanker owned by BP Shipping.

According to this spokesperson, HMS Montrose frigate placed itself between British Heritage tanker and the Iranian boats and forced them to retreat through verbal warnings.

The British government has expressed concern over Iran’s attempt and has urged the Islamic Republic officials to reduce tension in the region.

At the same time, BP thanked the British forces and announced: “Our absolute priority is the safety of our crew and ships.”

The British government has announced that it is constantly monitoring the security of the region and is determined to protect the freedom of navigation in accordance with international law.

Previously, the British Ministry of Defense had also confirmed that “Iranian boats attempted to stop a British tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.”

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has denied the report and announced that “in the past 24 hours there has been no confrontation with foreign ships, including any British ships.”

On Wednesday, in response to Britain’s seizure of an Iranian tanker in Gibraltar which was transporting oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions, President Rouhani warned Britain about the consequences, saying: “You were the ones who started to undermine the security, and you will understand its consequences later.”

The commander of Iran’s joint armed forces also promised that the seizure of the Iranian tanker “will not go unanswered.”

Former commander of IRGC, Mohsen Rezaee, had also called for the seizure of a British tanker in return.