Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement on state media on Friday that two oil tankers hit mines and caught fire in or near the Strait of Hormuz, a day after Tehran claimed five other tankers had met a similar fate.
“Two illegal oil tankers – one east of the Strait of Hormuz and the other within the Strait – attempted to pass through unauthorized routes and struck a mine,” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement, according to state news media.
The statement read: “The two tankers had all navigation and identification systems turned off. Supported by aggressive and terrorist U.S. forces, they attempted to leave the Strait of Hormuz through unauthorized routes; however, they caught fire when they struck mines and were unable to move.”
On Thursday, Iranian media reported that five oil tankers and a tugboat caught fire in a similar incident in the Strait of Hormuz.
Maritime officials have not confirmed any incidents, and President Trump has accused Iran of fabricating such attacks to drive up global energy prices.
However, the British naval agency said earlier this week that despite repeated U.S. assurances that shipping lanes through the strait are open and safe, there were at least 30 attacks on commercial ships in the area in October alone, a record high.
Since the war began with a joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28, Tehran has been trying to control traffic in the strait, through which about a fifth of the world’s crude supplies normally passed before the war. In response, the United States imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.
The U.S. military escorted tankers through the strait, which along with other routes helped freight traffic from the Gulf return to or at least close to pre-war levels, but ships continued to come under attack.
CBS/AFP