Iranupdated 1h ago2 min read
Iran’s IRGC Navy Strikes Four Vessels, Says They Caught Fire in Strait of Hormuz
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IRGC Navy says four ships caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after mine strikes. IRGC claims the vessels were violating Iranian transit regulations when struck.
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One story. Different accounts.
“On 17 Oct the IRGC Navy claimed that two supertankers had struck mines in the Strait of Hormuz; there is no substantiation to these claims,”
“Four violating vessels transferring oil cargo ship-to-ship in the northern Persian Gulf were hit simultaneously and are burning”
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Ships burn in Hormuz
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said four vessels involved in what it described as illegal oil transfers in the northern Persian Gulf caught fire after being struck simultaneously by its forces on Wednesday. Four ships caught fire overnight after hitting a sea mine in the western part of the Strait of Hormuz, and four tankers were targeted after being identified.
Four violating vessels transferring oil cargo ship-to-ship were hit simultaneously and were burning, while three other violating vessels struck mines west of the Strait of Hormuz overnight and were stopped after sustaining damage and fire. Haaretz framed the same incident as Iran warning the United States of a broader response, while it reported the IRGC Navy’s claim that the four vessels were struck simultaneously and caught fire after the Wednesday incident.
Two narratives collide
U.S. Central Command rejected Iran’s claims about ships colliding with sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz and quoted a CENTCOM spokesperson saying, "Iran’s claims that tankers in the Strait of Hormuz are colliding with sea mines are false."
CENTCOM also responded to another IRGC report by posting on the X platform, "This claim, like most IRGC claims, is false."
The IRGC Navy warned that the confrontation could expand to American military bases in the region if the U.S. military approach in the Strait of Hormuz continued, according to Kurdistan24.
Iranian Revolutionary Guards told Sepah News that naval mines halted three tankers attempting to travel the Strait of Hormuz via routes considered illegal by Tehran, and it quoted the Guards saying, "Two violating oil tankers were set ablaze and halted" due to mine explosions.
Casualties, risk, and response
Bahri confirmed that in a previous incident involving its vessel named SEDR in the Strait of Hormuz, two Filipino sailors died. The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization told Fox News on October 19 that since fighting began, about 6,000 seafarers have been stranded near the Strait of Hormuz, and it said he called for a halt to traffic until security guarantees are provided.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed a supertanker caught fire after striking a naval mine south of the Strait of Hormuz, but it said the reports had yet to be independently substantiated and that the Guards did not identify the vessels or provide independently verifiable evidence. JMIC’s October 18 advisory directly addressed Iranian claims that two supertankers struck mines on October 17 and stated, "there is no substantiation to these claims," while it also reported that CENTCOM rejected Iran’s account as false in earlier incidents.