TEHRAN — Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Thursday that three oil tankers exploded and caught fire after hitting sea mines while trying to cross an unauthorized route south of the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours.
The Guards’ navy said the tankers had turned off their radar and navigation systems and ignored its warnings.
“The oil tankers had switched off all their radar and navigation systems and were attempting to leave via an unauthorized route south of the Strait of Hormuz, ignoring warnings from the IRGC Navy, when they hit naval mines and exploded,”
The navy said that in a statement shared by state media.
The vessels were abandoned on the southern coast of the strait, according to the statement. The Guards did not name the tankers, their flags or their crews. No casualty figures were given.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, known as UKMTO, gave a narrower account. It said a vessel was seen on fire 9 nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman, by the master of another ship. The crew’s status was unknown, and there was no damage assessment or report on environmental impact. UKMTO did not give a cause, and it was not clear whether that ship was one of the three the Guards described.
In the same statement, the Guards warned that the unauthorized route is mined. Owners and crews were responsible for using it, they said. Vessels should not be misled by claims from U.S. Central Command on social media, and any provocative action that disregarded the rules for the strait would face a resolute response.
Iran’s army spokesman, Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia, said Thursday that the strait was under the strategic control of Iran’s armed forces and would stay closed until Iran’s conditions were fully met, Press TV reported.
None of that verifies the Guards’ claim on its own. UKMTO confirmed only one sighting of a ship on fire, and it offered no cause.
The strait, between Iran and Oman, normally carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas consumption, Reuters reported. Iran has restricted traffic there since the war that began on Feb. 28, and the United States has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports in response, Reuters reported.
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