Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said late on Wednesday that two more oil tankers and a tugboat caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after attempting to use routes Tehran considers unauthorised, and that its navy had taken control of two US drones and landed them intact. The claims, carried by Iranian state media and reported by Reuters, could not be independently verified.
The announcement is the latest in a rapid sequence of claims and counter-claims around the world's most important oil chokepoint, where commercial shipping has come under repeated attack and where the United States confirmed this week that it struck an Iranian target. What is confirmed, what is claimed, and what remains unknown are still shifting — and the gap between the two matters, because the strait carries roughly a fifth of the world's seaborne oil.
What the IRGC claimed on Wednesday
According to the IRGC statement, carried by Iranian state media, two separate incidents took place on the night before the announcement. A large oil tanker trying to cross a passage south of the strait struck a mine, caught fire and was stopped, the statement said. A second supertanker, leaving through a route in the eastern part of the strait, caught fire in what the statement described as an extensive blaze and also stopped. A tugboat that approached to put out the fire caught fire as well, according to the statement.
The IRGC also said electronic-warfare personnel from its navy took control of two "intruding" US LUCAS drones, landed them undamaged and captured them, and that its navy "continues to manage the Strait of Hormuz with full control". The statement accused Washington of encouraging ships to cross a mined route, and said the United States and its allies were paying large insurance costs for damaged vessels.
The claims follow a series of similar IRGC announcements this week. Earlier on Wednesday, the IRGC said four oil tankers had been destroyed after striking naval mines while attempting to pass through a prohibited shipping lane south of the strait, and that the tankers remained ablaze. Two other vessels were detained for violating shipping restrictions, it said, and its air defences had shot down a US-made MQ-9 drone over the strait. The IRGC says 11 tankers caught fire in the strait in the nine days to 2 November, several of which sank.
What is not verified: none of the IRGC's claims about the tankers, the tugboat or the captured drones has been independently confirmed. The vessels have not been publicly identified, no casualty figures have been given, and no independent imagery of the incidents has been released. This article reports the claims as claims, attributed to the IRGC, and will be updated as independent confirmation becomes available.
What has been independently reported
Separate from the IRGC's claims, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre — the Royal Navy-affiliated body that tracks shipping incidents — reported that two unidentified projectiles struck a tanker's engine room about 14 nautical miles (26 km) north-east of the Omani coastal village of Limah on Tuesday. No casualties were reported. On Wednesday, UKMTO reported that two unidentified projectiles struck another tanker about 26 km off the coast of Oman, again with no casualties or pollution reported. UKMTO did not link either incident to the IRGC's announcements, and it could not be independently verified whether the incidents UKMTO and the IRGC reported were the same events.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump confirmed that the United States had struck Iran early that day, telling Fox News that the strikes had targeted an anti-aircraft facility on Qeshm Island, the largest island in the strait. He described the operation as a "minor attack" and said it "wasn't war".
"They built an anti-aircraft facility. It took them about two months. We watched it get built. As soon as it was completed, we hit it last night."
US officials told US media earlier on Tuesday that the strikes had been "defensive" and followed Iranian fire at an American aircraft. The Wall Street Journal reported that the US attacked Qeshm Island on Monday as part of a series of unannounced small-scale strikes in the waterway aimed at halting Iranian attacks on American assets and passing ships.
The wider conflict
The confrontation around the strait follows the US-Israeli air campaign against Iran that began on 28 February, which killed longtime Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to US reporting. The conflict has been at a stalemate for months, but shipping in the strait has become the main arena of the contest: Iran has targeted vessels that attempt to cross without its authorisation, while the United States has weighed further strikes.
October marked the highest monthly number of attacks in the strait since the war began, with more than 35 incidents logged by UKMTO, according to the Wall Street Journal, and at least five vessels struck so far in November. Iran has used bomb-laden undersea drones, rocket-propelled grenades and limpet mines attached to hulls, regional officials, security firms and analysts told the newspaper, in what they described as an asymmetric campaign to disrupt individual oil shipments and re-establish the climate of fear that gripped shippers at the start of the conflict.
Iran has pressed ships to use a northern passage through its own waters instead of the southern lane designated by Oman, and has said it will reopen the strait only if the United States meets seven conditions, including lifting sanctions and ending what Tehran calls a US naval blockade. Iran's Supreme National Security Council secretary, Mohsen Rezaei, said on Tuesday that Washington's response to those demands "was not convincing". Qatar has been mediating, with its foreign ministry saying talks were continuing and that both sides "remain committed to the negotiation process".
Why the strait matters: the Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and Oman, is the narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the open ocean. Roughly a fifth of the world's oil supplies pass through it, along with large volumes of liquefied natural gas. Any sustained disruption raises shipping insurance costs, pushes up energy prices and forces tankers onto longer, costlier routes — which is why each incident in the strait moves oil markets even before its details are confirmed.
What to watch next
| Development | What would confirm it |
|---|---|
| Independent confirmation of the tanker fires | UKMTO incident reports, ship-tracking data, or statements from vessel owners or insurers naming the ships involved |
| US response to the drone claims | A Pentagon or Central Command statement on the two LUCAS drones and the MQ-9 |
| Further US strikes | US media, citing officials, have reported plans for strikes that could begin after the midterm elections, with three American aircraft carriers in the region |
| Diplomatic movement | Qatar's mediators reporting progress on Iran's seven conditions for reopening the strait |
| Oil market reaction | Brent crude and shipping insurance rates in Thursday trading |
Frequently asked questions
What do we know for certain?
That the United States struck a target on Qeshm Island on Tuesday — President Trump confirmed it. That UKMTO recorded projectile strikes on two tankers off Oman this week, with no casualties. And that the IRGC has made a series of claims about tankers striking mines and drones being captured. The claims themselves are confirmed as having been made; the events they describe are not independently verified.
What don't we know yet?
The identities of the tankers the IRGC says caught fire, whether anyone was hurt, whether the UKMTO incidents and the IRGC's claims describe the same ships, and whether the two US drones were in fact captured. Washington has not confirmed the drone claims, and the IRGC has not released imagery or vessel names.
Is the Strait of Hormuz closed?
No. Shipping continues through the strait, but under heightened risk. Iran says it will reopen the waterway fully only if the United States meets its seven conditions; in the meantime it is enforcing its own rules on which routes vessels may use, and detaining or attacking ships it says violate them.
Why does this matter beyond the region?
Because about a fifth of the world's oil passes through the strait. Sustained attacks raise insurance premiums and freight costs, push up crude prices, and can feed into fuel and food prices globally — which is why traders, governments and central banks watch each incident closely.
Key takeaways
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards claim two more tankers and a tugboat caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz and that two US drones were captured — claims that could not be independently verified.
- The US confirmed on Tuesday that it struck an anti-aircraft facility on Qeshm Island, which President Trump called a "minor attack".
- UKMTO independently reported projectile strikes on two tankers off Oman this week, with no casualties — but did not link them to the IRGC's claims.
- Iran says it will reopen the strait only if the US meets seven conditions, including lifting sanctions; Qatar is mediating.
- The strait carries roughly a fifth of the world's oil, so every incident carries global economic consequences.
This is a developing story. BreakingHour will update this article as independent confirmation of the IRGC's claims becomes available, and as the United States and Qatar respond.
