In the Gulf of Oman, the crews of two oil tankers evacuated their ships today after reporting explosions that prompted fears of a conflict between the U.S. and Iran. An image shared by Iranian state television showed a plume of smoke rising from one of the two vessels east of the Strait of Hormuz. Taiwan’s state oil refiner, which chartered one of the two tankers, said it suspected the ship had been hit by a torpedo. Iran denied involvement and said through a state news agency that Iran’s Navy had helped to safely evacuate 44 sailors from the stricken vessels. U.S. national security adviser John Bolton—who’s frequently called for U.S. military action against Iran—blamed Iran for attacks on oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates last month, without providing evidence.