IRGC Navy: Three Tankers Engulfed in “Massive Fires” After Striking Mines in Hormuz

By staff, Agencies

Three oil tankers have caught fire after striking naval mines while attempting to navigate unauthorized routes through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Navy of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps [IRGC].

In a statement released on Tuesday, the IRGC Navy said the vessels were rocked by explosions and engulfed in “massive fires” in the early hours of the day after disabling their navigation and identification systems and attempting to pass through unauthorized shipping routes in the strategic waterway.

The tankers were left burning off the southern coast of the strait, the statement said, adding that the intensity of the fires was so great that fishermen in the eastern section of the waterway witnessed what it described as a “brightly lit night.”

The IRGC Navy stressed that Iran’s regulations governing maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz had been repeatedly communicated to vessels through radio broadcasts and official notices.

It warned that any ships disregarding these regulations or cooperating with the US military to navigate unauthorized routes through the strait would face similar consequences.

Responding to statements issued by the US Central Command [CENTCOM], which oversees American military forces deployed in West Asia, the IRGC Navy rejected the US military command’s portrayal of the situation in the strategic waterway.

“The reality of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz is what you are seeing, not what the terrorist CENTCOM commander claims on social media using archival footage,” the statement said.

Iran shut down the strategic chokepoint following the launch of the latest round of what it described as unprovoked US-Israeli aggression against the country on February 28.

The Islamic Republic and the United States subsequently reached an agreement in June on a 60-day reopening period under a Pakistan-mediated memorandum of understanding.

As part of the arrangement, Iran established the Persian Gulf Strait Authority [PGSA] to oversee implementation of the understanding. However, Tehran said violations by Washington forced it to reinstate the closure of the waterway.

Iran has since made the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz conditional on the fulfillment of seven prerequisites.

Among the key conditions previously outlined by the Islamic Republic are an end to aggression on all fronts, the removal of what it describes as an illegal US naval blockade against Iran, the lifting of illegal sanctions, and the unfreezing of Iranian assets.