ISTANBUL, Oct 31 — Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said Friday that a fourth oil tanker had struck a mine and caught fire while attempting to pass through an unauthorised route in the Strait of Hormuz, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
The navy’s public relations office said the supertanker, carrying more than 2 million barrels of crude oil, ignored repeated radio warnings against using the southern passage through the strategic waterway.
The vessel was struck by a mine, triggering a powerful explosion and leaving it burning, according to the statement.
The IRGC said the tanker was attempting to exit the strait through what it described as an unauthorised southern route.
It claimed the incident marked the fourth time a tanker had caught fire in the strait since early Friday.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported earlier that a vessel had been struck by an unidentified projectile 40 nautical miles south of Iran’s Lavan Island at 1800GMT.
