IRGC Navy Says Two Supertankers Exploded Near Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps Navy said two supertankers exploded on Friday after attempting to use an “unauthorised” route south of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement published by Sepah News, the IRGC’s official news outlet, the navy said the vessels struck what it described as naval “mimes.” The supplied account does not clarify whether the term was intended to mean naval mines.

According to the IRGC Navy, the blasts ignited the tankers’ engine rooms and brought both vessels to a halt. Their crews subsequently abandoned ship, the navy said.

The two tankers were carrying more than 4.5 million barrels of crude oil combined, according to the statement. The vessels, their flags and operators were not identified, and no information was provided about possible casualties, environmental damage or their current condition.

Separate tanker incident reported

The report about the two supertankers was not independently linked in the supplied material to a separate incident reported by the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations.

UKMTO said it received a report on Thursday evening involving an outbound oil tanker seven nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman. The vessel reportedly said it had been struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

UKMTO did not identify the tanker or provide further details in the information available.

Iran warns of further action

A source close to the IRGC Navy, quoted by Tasnim news agency, said traffic by “violating” vessels in the Strait of Hormuz had been “completely stopped.” The source attributed the halt to Iran’s destruction of navigational aid systems serving such ships and its targeting of four “offending” tankers on Thursday.

An informed official quoted by Tasnim warned that if oil smuggling in the strait resumed, “much more crushing actions” would be taken against violating vessels and technical aid systems.

The source material says Iran tightened its control over the Strait of Hormuz in February and barred safe passage to vessels belonging to or affiliated with Israel and the United States after joint strikes on Iranian territory.

The Strait of Hormuz is a major maritime route for oil shipments. However, the supplied information does not establish whether the tankers described by the IRGC Navy were the same vessel or vessels involved in the incident reported by UKMTO.