In a statement on Tuesday, the IRGC Navy’s public relations office said one of the vessels, identified as a supertanker, hit a naval mine and suffered an explosion.
The second tanker, which was apparently operating under the protection of US military aircraft, encountered an incident and caught fire while attempting to secretly cross the waterway through an illegal route, it added.
The statement said both vessels had switched off all their navigation and identification systems before attempting the passage.
The IRGC Navy warned that the unauthorized route is unsafe and that vessels cooperating with US forces would face similar consequences if they attempted to use it.
Iranian forces have maintained full control over transit through the Strait — through which roughly one-fifth of global oil normally passes — requiring prior authorization and confining safe passage exclusively to designated northern corridors.
Southern routes near Omani waters have been declared unauthorized and mined, with repeated IRGC Navy statements confirming that vessels attempting to use them after disabling AIS systems have struck mines, exploded, and caught fire.
MNA
Your Comment