Iranupdated 28m ago2 min read
Archive photo · 8 March 2025IRGC Navy Says Two Oil Supertankers Halted, Burn After Explosions in Strait of Hormuz
“The two tankers ‘exploded after hitting naval mines’”
“It does not specify the nature of the ‘accident’ but says it left the two tankers immobilised after they were hit with a ‘violent explosion.’”
Photo: NASA Earth Observatory images by Wanmei Liang, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Adam, Public domain · Cropped for layout
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Two oil tankers carrying over four million barrels exploded in the Strait of Hormuz. IRGC Navy says explosions occurred while transiting an unauthorized southern route.
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IRGC says tankers exploded
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said two oil supertankers were forced to halt in the Strait of Hormuz after “massive explosions” while they were attempting to transit an unauthorized southern route. The IRGC Navy said the two vessels were carrying a combined cargo of “more than four million barrels of oil” and that the explosions forced both tankers to stop and catch fire.
The IRGC Navy warned that any vessel that disables its navigation systems in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz and cooperates with the US military to use the unauthorized southern route would “face the same fate.” An Anadolu Ajansı report said the IRGC pointed to a massive explosion on the two tankers that caused them to stop, while also quoting the IRGC’s claim that the tankers were burning due to “American hijacking and aggressor army’s trust/overconfidence.”
Competing explanations and warnings
The IRGC Navy described the incident as an unauthorized-route event and said the tankers were “now burning” after explosions, while it did not disclose the names or nationalities of the vessels. The IRGC Navy claimed the tankers were traversing a southern route that Iran regards as “not allowed,” and the IRGC statement said “Every ship in the Persian Gulf and in the Strait of Hormuz that turns off its navigation systems” would meet an end like this. The IRGC did not disclose the names or nationalities of the tankers and said the fires were still burning, using the phrase “burning now with confidence in the American army.”
Euronews reported that the IRGC did not disclose the names or nationalities of the tankers and said the fires were still burning, using the phrase “burning now with confidence in the American army.” The IRGC also framed the episode as retaliation, with Anadolu Ajansı quoting the IRGC that the tankers were “now burning due to the American hijacking and aggressor army’s trust/overconfidence,” while the IRGC did not specify the direct causes of the explosions.
Broader Hormuz escalation risk
The Strait of Hormuz has seen recurring incidents since the outbreak of the war, and an Iranian navy account said a fire broke out on an oil tanker after it was struck by a naval mine in a zone described as “prohibited and unsafe” east of the strait. October recorded the highest number of attacks on merchant ships in the strait since March, with 37 incidents, and the International Maritime Organization counted 130 incidents since the outbreak of the war resulting in the death of at least 25 sailors.
The IRGC Navy’s latest warning tied the incident to navigation behavior, with the IRGC saying any vessel that disables its navigation systems and cooperates with the US military to pass through the unauthorized southern route would “meet an end like this.” The Times of Israel said the IRGC described the fire as an “accident” on an unauthorized route, while it also reported that the IRGC statement said the two tankers were immobilised after they were hit with a “violent explosion.”