Five oil tankers and tugboat catch fire in Hormuz
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on SeneNews
Five oil tankers and a tugboat caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran’s armed forces. The incident occurred on the strategic maritime route at the heart of the conflict between Tehran and Washington, SeneNews reports, citing Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
Iranian armed forces said on Thursday that five oil tankers and a tugboat had caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic maritime route at the heart of the conflict between Tehran and Washington. The incidents were reported by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s armed force, and cited by the Fars news agency.
On Wednesday evening, a large oil tanker reportedly struck a mine while attempting to pass through a prohibited route south of the strait, before becoming immobilised. In a separate incident, a supertanker caught fire while leaving the eastern part of the strait, and the tugboat that came to its aid also caught fire, according to the Revolutionary Guard. The Iranian military later reported that three other oil tankers had hit mines during the day, state media said. Maritime security agencies have not confirmed this series of incidents.
The Strait of Hormuz carried around one-fifth of the world’s hydrocarbons before the war began in late February with Israeli-US strikes on Iran. Tehran claims control of the maritime route and regularly targets vessels crossing it without authorisation along the Omani coast, while Washington is imposing a blockade on Iranian ports and escorting oil tankers, according to SeneNews.
The incidents follow negotiations between Iran and the United States on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, announced on 2 November, and Washington’s confirmation of strikes near Hormuz on 3 November.
