The Iranian Revolutionary Guard reported this Wednesday that a container ship has sunk in waters located south of the Strait of Hormuz after hitting a naval mine placed in the area, and noted that the incident occurred when the ship "was attempting to transit through an unauthorized route."
"A container ship that was trying to pass through an unauthorized and dangerous route in the Strait of Hormuz hit a naval mine, which exploded, suffering a fire," the Revolutionary Guard Navy said in a statement reported by the Iranian public television network, IRIB.
In the statement, Iranian authorities emphasized that "the ship, which carried more than 2,500 containers, sank early in the day in waters south of the Strait of Hormuz" and called on "local boats and fishermen" to exercise caution in the area to "avoid collisions with the containers that are floating in the water."
Official sources have not yet provided additional information about the ship's flag or the situation of the crew affected by the incident, which occurs a day after the Revolutionary Guard Navy reiterated on Tuesday that Iran maintains absolute control over the Strait of Hormuz and warned that it is prepared to sink any U.S. warship that approaches the area.
These words were rejected by the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), which released a message on social media emphasizing that "the commander of the Revolutionary Guard Navy does not have a Navy." "U.S. forces and regional partners clearly control the Strait of Hormuz," it reiterated.
In the same vein, CENTCOM detailed that during the day on Tuesday, U.S. forces "helped Gulf partners transit more than 19 million barrels of crude through the strait," a strategic route that has been subjected to restrictions since the offensive launched on February 28 by the United States and Israel against Iran and the subsequent military conflict, which has destabilized much of the Middle East.