Hormuz Tensions Escalate as Iran Says Mines Set Three Oil Tankers Ablaze

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have claimed that three oil tankers exploded and caught fire after hitting mines while attempting to cross a restricted route through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the incidents occurred within the previous 24 hours as the vessels attempted to use what Tehran describes as an unauthorised southern corridor.

“Over the past 24 hours, three violating oil tankers exploded and caught fire after striking mines while attempting to pass through the unauthorised southern route of the Strait of Hormuz,” the statement said.

The IRGC alleged that the tankers had “switched off all their radar and navigation systems” and proceeded despite warnings from its navy.

Authorities had yet to establish the ships’ identities, their national flags or the exact times of the reported incidents.

The development comes amid heightened tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global shipping route through which approximately one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas consumption normally passes.

Since the war began on February 28, Iran has imposed severe restrictions on maritime traffic through the strait, prompting the United States to establish a blockade on Iranian ports.

Tehran’s armed forces have also repeatedly accused US Central Command (CENTCOM) of urging commercial vessels to travel through a southern corridor close to Oman’s coastline, a route Iran considers unauthorised.

Warning shipping operators against using the passage, the IRGC said: “The IRGC Navy states that the unauthorised route through the Strait of Hormuz is mined, and that vessel owners and crews are responsible for transiting these routes and should not pay attention to CENTCOM’s delusions on social media.”

Separately, the British maritime monitoring agency UKMTO said earlier on Thursday that it had received a report of a ship on fire in the Strait of Hormuz. The agency did not disclose what caused the fire or whether anyone was injured or killed.

It was not immediately clear whether the incident reported by UKMTO involved any of the three tankers cited by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

In another announcement, the IRGC claimed that its electronic warfare unit had seized a US reconnaissance drone during an operation in the western part of the strait.

“The IRGC Navy announced that its electronic warfare unit had successfully captured a US MQM-170 drone during an offensive operation in the western Strait of Hormuz,” the statement said.

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