Iran says oil tanker catches fire after hitting mines in Strait of Hormuz

Tehran: Iran’s Army Navy said on Sunday that an oil tanker caught fire after striking naval mines east of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement published on the Army’s website, the Navy said the tanker had switched off its identification systems and was travelling through a “forbidden” area east of the strait when it hit the mines.

The Navy warned that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed to vessels unless all threats were removed, according to Xinhua.

Earlier in the day, the Navy of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said an oil tanker had caught fire within the preceding hours after colliding with naval mines in an “unauthorised” route through the strait.

In a statement on the IRGC’s official news outlet, Sepah News, the Navy said the explosion triggered a major fire aboard the vessel. It described the incident as the third oil tanker to strike naval mines in the strait’s “unauthorised” route since the beginning of the day.

Separately, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on X that its forces had disabled a commercial vessel in the Gulf of Oman after its civilian crew “ignored repeated warnings” and allegedly attempted to violate the naval blockade against Iran several times.

“A US military aircraft fired precision munitions at the stern of St. Kitts-flagged M/V Huda, disabling the ship after CENTCOM forces directed the crew to abandon targeted spaces,” CENTCOM said. It added that the cargo vessel had attempted to leave regional waters after visiting an Iranian port.

CENTCOM said that since July, US forces have redirected 147 commercial vessels and disabled five merchant ships that refused to comply with the blockade.

Iran tightened restrictions on the strait on February 28, barring safe passage for vessels belonging to or affiliated with Israel and the United States following their joint strikes on Iranian territory. The United States has also imposed a naval blockade on Iran.

(Inputs from IANS)