Iran’s IRGC says oil tanker explodes after hitting naval mines in Hormuz Strait

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said an oil tanker identified as EL GAIA exploded and caught fire after hitting naval mines while attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz through a forbidden route, as Tehran maintained that the waterway remains closed.

Tehran: The Navy of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said that a super oil tanker seeking to cross the Strait of Hormuz via the “forbidden” route south of the waterway exploded and caught fire after hitting naval mines.

In a statement on the IRGC’s official news outlet Sepah News, the Navy said efforts to contain the fire on the tanker, identified as “EL GAIA,” were futile, and the entire vessel was engulfed in flames.

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It added that warnings had been issued about the risks of using the “illegal” route in the strategic waterway, stressing that the strait remains closed and under the control of Iran’s naval forces.

Earlier in the day, Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), the body responsible for maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, warned insurance companies and classification societies against providing services to ships on its updated list of “violating” vessels, Xinhua news agency reported.

In a post on its account on the social media platform X, the PGSA said that insurance companies, protection and indemnity insurance (P&I) clubs, and classification societies “are warned to refrain from providing services to these vessels to avoid consequences arising from dealing with them.”

Earlier this month, the IRGC said that its naval forces had targeted a US unmanned surface vehicle (USV) in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement published on its official news outlet Sepah News, the IRGC said the Saildrone Explorer-type USV was on an “aggressive mission” and was struck at the strait’s entrance.

Saildrone Explorer USVs were previously used in the region by the US Fifth Fleet and Task Force 59 headquartered in Bahrain, the IRGC said, adding that the US naval base in Bahrain had been targeted in Iranian strikes and the USVs are now used by a unit based in Khasab in Oman.

The IRGC repeated that the Strait of Hormuz is closed and under its control, warning that “any hostile presence in the strategic waterway will be targeted.”

Following US-Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran restricted passage through the strategic waterway, while US forces imposed a naval blockade targeting vessels travelling to or from Iranian ports.