The Iranian Revolutionary Guard has reported this Sunday the occurrence of two new explosions caused by the detonation of naval mines against two tankers that were sailing on "unauthorized" routes in the Strait of Hormuz.
"Two tankers that were traveling illegally through the Strait of Hormuz have exploded after hitting naval mines," explained the Revolutionary Guard Navy in a statement released by the official media.
According to this military report, one of the vessels "is a supertanker" that "caught fire after suffering a severe explosion for transiting illegally through the Strait of Hormuz".
The text underlines that both vessels had turned off their navigation and identification systems with the aim of "trying to pass in secret and without authorization through the Strait of Hormuz with the support of the terrorist army of the United States". "But after this incident they have been stranded," the note added.
For its part, the British Navy's maritime trade agency (UKMTO, for its acronym in English) has indicated that it has received notice of an "incident" involving a merchant ship that issued a distress call "saying that another vessel has been hit by an unidentified projectile".
Tehran has restricted transit through the Strait of Hormuz in response to the bombings by U.S. and Israeli aviation on its territory, a decision that has pushed up international oil prices since it is an essential route for the خروج of crude from the Middle East. In parallel, attacks have been recorded in the vicinity of Bab el Mandeb linked to the activity of the Houthi militias allied with Iran.