Iran Guards Say Struck Vessel in Hormuz

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have said they struck a vessel attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic shipping route that carries a significant share of global energy supplies.

The Guards’ navy said on Monday that a supertanker caught fire after being hit in the waterway. 

According to a statement published on its official news platform, Sepah News, the vessel had attempted to pass through the strait without authorisation.

The statement accused the ship of disabling its tracking transponders to avoid detection and ignoring warnings from the Guards’ navy before the attack.

Iran has maintained a blockade of the strait since the United States and Israel launched strikes against the country in February, triggering a wider conflict across the Middle East. 

Washington has responded with a counter-blockade targeting Iranian ports, while US forces regularly escort vessels navigating the waterway.

Since the conflict began, Iranian forces have repeatedly targeted ships attempting to cross the strait without their permission.

The Guards’ naval commander, Ali Ozmaei, warned over the weekend that vessels switching off their transponders to avoid detection would be treated as hostile and face a severe response.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a British maritime security agency, reported four separate incidents on Monday involving vessels struck in the Strait of Hormuz the previous day.