The key facts
- The IRGC claims four tankers struck mines in the zone of the Strait of Hormuz closed by Tehran
- Iran also claimed to have destroyed an American MQ-9 drone over the strait
- Earlier, two projectiles were reported to have hit a tanker off the coast of Oman
IRGC statement on tankers hitting mines
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reported that four oil tankers were blown up by naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the IRNA agency reports. According to the Iranian military, the vessels were attempting to pass through an area that Tehran had declared closed to shipping. 'Four oil tankers that tried to take a prohibited route in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz struck naval mines and are still on fire,' the IRGC statement said.
Drone and earlier incidents
The Iranian side also claimed to have destroyed an American MQ-9 drone over the Strait of Hormuz. Both reports come from the Iranian military and have not yet been confirmed by independent sources in the cited publications. Earlier, another incident in the region was reported: off the coast of Oman, two unidentified projectiles hit the engine room of an oil tanker. According to the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre (UKMTO), the vessel was located 14 nautical miles northeast of one of the country's settlements. The situation is unfolding against the backdrop of an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East; details about casualties and the ownership of the vessels have not yet been disclosed.
