Pompeo says US believes Iran behind attacks on Oman Gulf tankers

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday that the United States has evaluated, in light of knowledge, sort of weapons utilized and dimension of mastery required, that Iran is in charge of the assaults on tankers in the Gulf of Oman. 

He offered no solid proof to back up the affirmation. 

"It is the appraisal of the United States government that the Islamic Republic of Iran is in charge of the assaults that happened in the Gulf of Oman today," Pompeo told columnists. 

"This appraisal depends on insight, the weapons utilized, the dimension of mastery expected to execute the task, later comparative Iranian assaults on delivery, and the way that no intermediary gathering working in the region has the assets and capability to act with such a high level of modernity," Pompeo said. 

Two oil tankers were assaulted on Thursday and left hapless in the Gulf of Oman. The assault drove up oil costs and fed fears of another showdown among Iran and the United States. 

The White House said President Donald Trump had been advised. 

Washington blamed Tehran for being behind a comparable assault on May 12 on four tankers in a similar zone, a fundamental delivery course through which a great part of the world's oil passes.