CNN has obtained exclusive images showing the damage and debris from a suicide drone attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman on Tuesday night.   

  The two images, provided by a Western defense official, show a hole in what appears to be the hull of the Liberian-flagged, Singapore-owned and Israel-linked Pacific Zircon, as well as what appears to be the shattered remains of a drone .  next to evidence indicators.  The charred remains of the drone show the numbers 229 on the side.   

  CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of the photos.   

  On Wednesday, US and Israeli officials pointed the finger of blame at Iran – identifying the drone as a HESA Shahed 136 similar to the self-exploding Iranian-made drones used by Russia in Ukraine.   

  There were no injuries in the incident, according to Eastern Pacific Shipping, the vessel’s operating company.  Nor did it cause major damage, according to a US military official.   

  “We are in contact with the vessel and there are no reports of injuries or pollution.  All crew are safe and accounted for,” Eastern Pacific Shipping said Wednesday.  “There is some minor damage to the vessel’s hull, but no cargo leakage or water ingress.”   

  A U.K. Royal Navy frigate, HMS Lancaster, offered assistance to the crew of the Pacific Zircon after being informed of the incident, a U.K. Ministry of Defense spokesman said in a statement.   

  On Wednesday, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Iran was likely behind a drone attack, saying in a statement that while there was “no justification for this attack”, it was “the latest in a pattern of such actions and wider destabilizing activities.  ”   

  “After reviewing the available information, we are confident that Iran likely carried out this attack using a UAV, a lethal capability that it is increasingly using directly and through its proxies throughout the Middle East and is proliferating in Russia for use in Ukraine.” , Sullivan said.   

  He warned that the action threatens international shipping, trade and “freedom of navigation through this critical waterway”.   

  The US Central Command also said on Wednesday that a “one-way attack drone of the Shahed series” struck the vessel.   

  “This drone strike against a civilian vessel in this critical strait demonstrates, once again, the destabilizing nature of Iran’s malign activity in the region,” said Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, commander of US Central Command. .   

  An Israeli official told CNN on Wednesday that the drone attack was “an Iranian provocation in the Gulf” linked to the World Cup, which starts in Qatar on Sunday.   

  “It is not an attack against Israel,” the official said.  “It’s the same thing they usually do in the Gulf, trying to disrupt stability and especially influence the events of the World Cup.”   

  The official asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the situation.   

  The weapon and target fit the pattern of attacks linked to Iran in the past.  On July 30, 2021, an armed drone attacked a cargo ship named the Mercer Street off the coast of Oman, killing two.  This ship was linked to an Israeli billionaire.   

  Soccer teams and fans from 32 nations, including Iran, are gathering in Qatar ahead of the World Cup.