Iran Says Mines Set Three Tankers Ablaze in Strait of Hormuz as US Military Calls Tehran's Claims False

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran's Revolutionary Guard said Tuesday that its naval mines had stopped three oil tankers trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on routes Tehran considers illegal. The U.S. military called the claim false, the latest clash of accounts over control of the world's most important oil chokepoint.

In a statement on its Sepah News website, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said two tankers caught fire and were stopped after hitting mines at what it called an illegal crossing point in the southern part of the strait. In a later statement on state television, the Guard said a third tanker "exploded and caught fire after striking a naval mine" south of the strait.

The Guard said the third ship was carrying more than 2 million barrels of crude and "had deactivated all of its radar and navigation systems." It did not name any of the vessels. Their identities and the extent of any damage could not be independently confirmed.

The IRGC also said it had shot down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone over the strait. Washington did not immediately confirm that claim.

Dispute over a 'southern route'

At the center of the dispute is a southern shipping lane that the Trump administration supports but Iran does not recognize. Washington has been trying to escort more commercial ships through the strait, while Tehran insists vessels need its permission to pass.

The Guard warned that shipowners and crews in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman would be held responsible for using unauthorized routes, and it promised a firm response to anyone ignoring Iran's security restrictions.

U.S. Central Command rejected Iran's account. A CENTCOM spokesman said Iran's claims of tankers hitting mines were false. "We have cleared the international waterways in the Strait of Hormuz of mines," he said.

The U.S. military has repeatedly accused the IRGC of using false claims to scare shipping companies. Last week, the United States said a container ship, the M/V GFS Pride, was struck by an Iranian projectile, not a mine as Tehran had said. Over the weekend, Iran's navy said a container ship sank in the southern part of the strait after hitting a mine.

Attacks at record levels

Whatever caused each incident, attacks on shipping in and around the strait have reached their highest level since the war began.

According to the International Maritime Organization, nine ships, mostly crude oil tankers, were hit in the strait or off Oman in the first days of October. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center reported at least 12 attacks on ships in the week ending Oct. 16. Kpler has recorded at least 18 attacks over the past two weeks.

The danger has also spread beyond the narrow passage. Analysts at LSEG said Iran has been targeting vessels as far south as the Gulf of Oman. That threatens ship-to-ship transfers in open waters, which traders have used to move Gulf crude while avoiding the strait.

Oil flows fall again

The surge in attacks reversed a recovery in traffic. Crude shipments through the strait returned close to pre-war levels in September. On Oct. 8, nearly 20.8 million barrels of oil passed through.

But Kpler data showed average crude flows fell to about 8.5 million barrels a day in the week ended Oct. 7, roughly 40% below normal. Ship operators have increasingly turned off their tracking transponders while passing through, making traffic harder to monitor.

Oil prices rose Wednesday on the latest reports. Brent crude climbed above $110 a barrel, and U.S. crude neared $100.

A war now in its eighth month

Shipping through the strait has been largely disrupted since Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran. In peacetime, about one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passes through the waterway.

The United States has responded with its own blockade of Iranian ports. CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said last week that the blockade had stopped about $25 billion worth of Iranian crude exports.

Both sides claim to control the waterway. CENTCOM has said U.S. and partner forces are helping Gulf states move millions of barrels of oil through the strait. Iran has expanded naval patrols east of the strait and into the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea.

Diplomacy deadlocked

Talks to reopen the strait have stalled. Iran has proposed a seven-day plan and set seven conditions it says are based on an earlier agreement known as the Islamabad memorandum. Iran's top negotiator and parliament speaker said this month that the strait "will not open until our seven conditions based on the Islamabad memorandum are met." Trump rejected an earlier Iranian proposal to reopen the waterway.

Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, visited Tehran this week to discuss mediation. Iranian media reported that Iran told him there would be no talks with Washington until its demands were met. Reuters, citing senior Iranian officials, reported that Tehran is dragging out negotiations to weaken Trump politically before next month's U.S. midterm elections.

Qatar has said it will increase its efforts to restart negotiations.

Wider regional tensions

The fighting in Hormuz is part of a broader escalation. On Monday, Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed attacks on a Saudi Aramco facility in Yanbu, the Shaybah oilfield, and airports in Riyadh and Abha. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said Tehran had received no reply to its offer to help mediate between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis.

For shipping companies, insurers and crews, the situation remains highly dangerous. Many vessels are waiting outside the strait, and maritime security agencies are warning that risks to commercial ships remain severe.