Iran’s IRGC Says Oil Supertanker Hit a Naval Mine and Caught Fire in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran's Revolutionary Guard navy says an oil supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of crude struck a naval mine and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel has not been independently identified, and the IRGC's account has not been confirmed.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy said Saturday that an oil supertanker struck a naval mine and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iranian state media and Al Jazeera’s live coverage of the conflict between Iran and the United States and Israel.
The IRGC said the vessel was carrying more than two million barrels of crude oil. It alleged the tanker had switched off its navigation and radar systems and was trying to cross the strait on an unauthorized route with American military support. That account has not been independently confirmed.
The ship’s name, flag, owner, and the condition of its crew were not established in the reporting reviewed by Al Jazeera, whose live blog was updated at 5:30 a.m. Coordinated Universal Time on Saturday. The IRGC also did not say whether rescue or firefighting crews had reached the vessel, and no oil spill had been confirmed.
In its statement, the Guards declared that the Strait of Hormuz remained closed under Iranian rules and warned ships against what it called unauthorized transit. The United States military has described the strait as open while saying its blockade of Iran continues, and Tehran and Washington give different accounts of who controls passage through the waterway.
A string of mine strikes in the strait
The reported fire is the latest in a string of attacks on commercial shipping in the waterway. A UAE-owned cargo ship caught fire and sank on Wednesday after being hit by a mine, and the Singapore-flagged container ship GFS Pride burned and sank this week after a projectile strike. All 21 crew members of the GFS Pride were evacuated, according to Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority. Both incidents were reported by Brit Brief, a UK-based outlet citing state media and maritime authorities.
Energy markets reacted to the prospect of further disruption. Brent crude reached about $109 a barrel amid supply fears, according to Reuters, as traders weighed the risk that fighting in the strait could cut oil flows through a passage that once carried about 20 percent of the world’s traded crude.
Fighting on other fronts
The reported tanker fire came as fighting continued on several fronts. Saudi Arabia’s coalition said it destroyed two ballistic-missile launchers in Yemen’s Saada governorate on Saturday, according to Sky News Arabia. In Yemen, two missiles struck near Aden airport late Friday, with no casualties reported, the Associated Press reported. The International Organization for Migration says 233,077 people have been displaced in the latest fighting in Yemen.
President Donald Trump has raised the possibility of an American strike on Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified site in Iran, while Tehran has said the strait would reopen if American forces leave the region. Al Jazeera Arabic also reported a pause in some American strikes on Iranian missiles and drones, though US Central Command said its blockade remained in place.
Reporting based on coverage by Al Jazeera, the Associated Press, Reuters, Sky News Arabia, the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, Anadolu Agency, Iran International, and The Levant Files.
