Pompeo: US thinks Iran behind oil tanker attacks

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday that the United States has assessed, based on intelligence, type of weapons used and level of expertise needed, that Iran is responsible for the attacks on tankers in the Gulf of Oman.

He offered no concrete evidence to back up the assertion.

"It is the assessment of the United States government that the Islamic Republic of Iran is responsible for the attacks that occurred in the Gulf of Oman today," Pompeo told reporters.

"This assessment is based on intelligence, the weapons used, the level of expertise needed to execute the operation, recent similar Iranian attacks on shipping, and the fact that no proxy group operating in the area has the resources and proficiency to act with such a high degree of sophistication," Pompeo said.

He added that Iran was working to disrupt the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz.

Two oil tankers were attacked Thursday and left adrift in the Gulf of Oman. The attack drove up oil prices and stoked fears of a new confrontation between Iran and the United States. Tehran denies the charges.

The White House said President Donald Trump had been briefed.

An unexploded device, believed to be a limpet mine, was spotted on the side of one of two oil tankers, a U.S. official told Reuters earlier Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

If confirmed, then the method of attack would be the same as the one that the United States believes was used last month when four other tankers were struck off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.