Three Oil Tankers Hit Mines in Strait of Hormuz
Three oil tankers hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday and caught fire, Iran’s navy and Revolutionary Guards said.
Fires broke out on all three vessels after the tankers hit mines, having switched off their tracking systems before entering areas Tehran has declared unsafe.
The Guards’ navy said the two tankers were in the south of the waterway.
“A short while ago, two oil tankers that had switched off their radar and positioning systems and were secretly attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz through an unauthorised route exploded and caught fire after striking a naval mine,” the Guards’ navy said in a statement carried by Iranian state media.
Tankers hit mines east of the strait as well
Iran’s conventional navy said a third tanker was hit east of the strait. It was sailing through a prohibited zone with its tracking switched off when it caught fire and was forced to stop.
The statements gave no names or origins, but the Guards said one of the two was a supertanker.
Iran’s navy warned any tanker entering the prohibited area would face the same fate.
Tehran has insisted since war erupted with the United States in February that vessels must obtain its authorisation to cross the strait. The United States has imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports in response.
Shipping under strain for nine months
The mine strikes are the latest in a long series of attacks on shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A United Nations official warned on Friday that the attacks threaten international peace and security and the global economy.
Khaled Khiari, the UN assistant secretary-general for the region, told the Security Council that at least 25 seafarers have been killed in and around the strait since February.
The International Maritime Organization tracked 136 security incidents in Hormuz and the wider Middle East between March 1 and November 11, with 35 in October and 10 in November. Shipping traffic has fallen about 65 percent below pre-war levels.
Khiari said civilian vessels and commercial shipping must not become targets.
Iran has said the strait will not reopen until the United States ends the naval blockade, lifts sanctions, releases frozen funds, ends the fighting and announces an end to the war.
Oil prices ease despite the attacks
Brent futures slipped 5 cents to $95.77 a barrel on Friday, putting them on course for a second straight weekly decline, as signs of a growing global supply surplus outweighed the danger to shipping.
The International Energy Agency’s members will release around 71 million barrels of emergency oil stocks through February 2027, roughly doubling the pace of September and October.
Pakistan has urged de-escalation in the Gulf at the United Nations, and oil prices have risen before on disruptions in the strait. Pakistan’s energy security is tied to the waterway, and Pakistan has sought extra LNG cargoes for the winter. The Security Council has also renewed sanctions on Yemen’s Houthis, whose attacks on shipping add to the danger.
Diplomacy continues as tensions rise
The Russian and Chinese ambassadors to the United Nations expressed concern at the United Nations over US and Israeli threats of renewed hostilities against Iran, and stressed the need for a diplomatic path to peace.
China’s Ambassador Fu Cong said the risk of a large-scale conflict remains high, and recent talk of renewed hostilities against Iran was particularly concerning.
US President Donald Trump does not want to resume the war with Iran “for now”, according to a media report citing a US official, which said his administration had settled on a middle path of no new war, no talks and no lasting peace.
Frequently asked questions
How many tankers hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz?
Three, on Saturday, November 14. Fires broke out on all three vessels.
Where exactly did the tankers hit the mines?
Two hit mines in the south of the waterway on an unauthorised route. A third hit a mine east of the strait in a prohibited zone.
Were the tankers named?
No. The statements gave no names or origins. The Guards said one of the two tankers hit in the south was a supertanker.
Why were the tankers attacked?
Iran says the tankers had switched off their tracking systems and were crossing without permission, which Tehran has required since war erupted with the United States in February.
How dangerous has shipping in Hormuz become?
The UN says at least 25 seafarers have been killed in and around the strait since February, and 136 security incidents were tracked between March 1 and November 11.
