Iran tankers fire Hormuz after three oil tankers struck naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, Iran’s navy said. One tanker hit a mine in the eastern part of the strait on Saturday morning, while two others struck mines later in the day, according to Iranian state media.
The Revolutionary Guards Navy said the two tankers hit later in the day had been trying to pass through a route Iran had closed to shipping. Iran’s IRNA news agency quoted the Guards as saying the vessels “were attempting to slip through a prohibited route in the Strait of Hormuz when they hit naval mines, exploded, and burst into flames.” The Iran tankers fire Hormuz reports were carried by Iranian state media on Saturday.
Iran tankers fire Hormuz in prohibited route, Guards say
One of the tankers hit in the south of the strait was a supertanker, according to the Guards’ statement. Iran’s conventional navy said separately that another tanker sailing through a prohibited zone east of the strait, with its tracking and identification systems switched off, “caught fire and was forced to stop after striking a naval mine.”
Iran had earlier put the number of tankers hit at two, and the Saturday statements raised it to three. Neither statement named the ships, their flags, their cargoes or their exact positions, and no casualties have been reported. The Iran tankers fire Hormuz statements did not say whether any crew members were hurt.
Iran tankers fire Hormuz claims not yet confirmed
Reuters said it could not immediately verify the reports. The Associated Press, citing Iranian state television, also reported that three oil tankers struck mines around the strait. The UK Maritime Trade Operations centre, which monitors shipping in the region, had not confirmed the incidents.
The U.S. military dismissed Tehran’s claims about mines as “false,” according to U.S. Central Command. The U.S. military has said it has cleared the main shipping routes of mines. The Iran tankers fire Hormuz account has not been confirmed by any source outside Iran.
Until shipowners, the UKMTO or independent monitors confirm what happened, the Iranian statements remain unconfirmed claims. Iran has claimed a series of mine strikes on tankers in recent weeks, and none of those claims has been independently verified.
Iran tankers fire Hormuz after new transit rules
The incidents follow rules Tehran issued on October 26 that require all vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz to obtain permission and follow the coordination of the Revolutionary Guards’ Maritime Traffic Control Center. Iran has imposed restrictions on vessels seeking to pass through the strait and has attacked ships it says violated those restrictions, as it seeks to assert control over the waterway and put pressure on the United States.
The strait is a narrow waterway that carries a large share of the world’s seaborne oil. The Tasnim news agency said the navy warned that any tanker entering the prohibited zone would meet the same fate.
What the strait carries
Iran’s account changed over the weekend. The Guards’ navy said on Friday night that two tankers, including a supertanker, had exploded and caught fire after hitting mines. On Saturday, the navy said three tankers had caught fire, one in the morning and two later in the day. The Iran tankers fire Hormuz claims are the latest in a series of mine strike reports from Iran in recent weeks, and none of them has been independently verified.
Iran’s navy and the Revolutionary Guards both issued statements about the incidents, with the Guards’ navy speaking about the two tankers hit later in the day and the conventional navy speaking about the tanker hit in the east. The statements gave no position for any of the vessels beyond the general areas described, and no shipping company has said one of its vessels was involved.
The Iran tankers fire Hormuz reports came with no response reported from the United States, the UKMTO or any shipping company. The claims remain Iran’s alone, and no tanker name, flag, owner or crew detail has been given for any of the three vessels.