Iran today dismissed the accusations of the United States as baseless that it carried out twin attacks that left two tankers ablaze in the Gulf of Oman escalating tensions across the region and sending world oil prices soaring.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned that Washington would defend its forces and allies in the region and the United States pressed its case as the UN Security Council met to address the incident.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted today that the US administration had immediately jumped to make allegations against Iran without a shred of factual or circumstantial evidence. He accused it of seeking to sabotage diplomacy amid a visit to Iran by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and cover up its economic terrorism against Iran in enforcing crippling unilateral sanctions.

With tensions spiralling between Iran and the United States, the European Union called for maximum restraint and UN chief Antonio Guterres warned the world cannot afford a major confrontation in the Gulf.

Iran labelled the apparent attacks suspicious, as its supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rebuffed overtures by Abe to open talks with US President Donald Trump. Pompeo said there was strong evidence of Iran’s culpability after the US Navy said it had spotted an unexploded limpet mine stuck to the hull of one of the vessels.

The two vessels were struck by explosions in the early daylight hours yesterday after passing through the Strait of Hormuz and travelling around 25 nautical miles off Iran’s southern coast headed towards Asia.