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Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) struck the container vessel MSC Sariska V twice near Iraq's Umm Qasr port on Monday. The ship was first hit by a cruise missile as it was leaving the port, and then by a drone that ignited a fire aboard.
The attack prompted the world's largest container shipping line, the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), to deny any connection to the United States or Israel and warn of the danger posed to maritime commerce.
All crew members were unharmed.
The MSC said in a statement it was "deeply concerned" by the attack and "the risk they create for its innocent seafarers and essential maritime trade in the region."
"This retaliatory action is completely unjustified based on the allegations made by the IRGC, since MSC is a neutral commercial carrier with no affiliation to the United States or Israel. Founded by Italian national Captain Gianluigi Aponte, the company is headquartered and domiciled in Switzerland and is wholly owned by his children, Diego and Alexa Aponte, both Italian nationals with no other citizenship," the company stated.
The UKMTO, the U.K.'s maritime trade security agency, reported the Panama-flagged vessel was approximately 40 nautical miles southeast of Umm Qasr when the first explosion occurred on its starboard side.
The MSC said that the initial projectile struck as the ship was leaving the port with the pilot still on board.
The second impact followed shortly after. Iraqi officials told Reuters it was caused by a drone. An Iraqi maritime patrol member at the scene described what unfolded.
"As we were assessing the damage from the first explosion, we heard a drone hovering overhead, followed by a powerful blast that sparked a fire on the tanker," the official said.
The fire was later brought under control. The UKMTO said it was unaware of any environmental impact.
An IRGC spokesman said the Guard Corps had targeted the MSC Sariska V for carrying cargo for what he called "the American-Zionist enemy," and described the attack as retaliation for a prior U.S. strike on the Iranian vessel Lion Star in the Sea of Oman.
Iran's semi-official Tasnim News Agency added context to the decision to target the ship, stating the MSC ship had been "officially operating in Israel since 1990" and had established offices in Haifa and Ashdod.
"It annually moves more than 600,000 containers in Israeli ports," Tasnim said.
The MSC maintains weekly services to Haifa and Ashdod, according to the company's website. But it rejected the characterization used to justify the attack.
The IRGC has repeatedly threatened Israeli and American vessels in the Persian Gulf and those attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz since the war began in February. But it has also attacked commercial vessels with no direct connection to either country.
The MSC holds roughly 21% of the global market share as of late 2025 and operates from 675 offices across 155 countries.
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