Container ship sinks in Strait of Hormuz after hitting mine in unauthorized route
Iran said a container ship that intended to pass through an unauthorized route in the Strait of Hormuz sank on Wednesday after striking a naval mine.
According to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy said in a statement that the violating container ship exploded after striking a naval mine and catching fire.
“The vessel, which was carrying more than 2,500 containers, sank on Wednesday morning in the southern waters of the strait because of the intensity of the fire,” the IRGC Navy’s said.
The IRGC Navy also cautioned local vessels navigating the area, saying: “Local vessels and fishermen must exercise the utmost safety when navigating this route so they do not collide with containers floating on the water.”
The incident comes amid a series of maritime developments reported by the IRGC Navy in recent days involving commercial vessels attempting to use routes that Tehran considers unauthorized.
On Monday, the IRGC reported that an oil tanker had struck a naval mine in the Strait of Hormuz after disregarding warnings and attempting to navigate an unauthorized route. The incident followed two similar cases involving oil tankers over the preceding days.
The IRGC Navy also announced on October 9 that its forces had struck a liquefied petroleum gas carrier attempting to pass through an unauthorized route south of the strait.
Warning to violating vessels
In its recent statements, the IRGC has warned vessels against ignoring its navigation restrictions, saying ships switching off their navigation and identification systems would be treated as hostile.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's hydrocarbons usually transit, has become the main theatre of conflict in the war between Iran and the US.
Iran closed the strait in response to the latest round of US-Israeli aggression, preventing US and allied ships from navigating the strategic waterway.
The move resulted in a significant increase in oil and energy prices across the globe, especially in the US, forcing Washington and the International Energy Agency (IEA) to release their strategic resources several times.
Following the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Tehran opened the Strait of Hormuz, but after the US violated the MoU by blockading Iranian ports, Iran’s Armed Forces closed the maritime corridor once again.
Fishermen injured in drone incident
In another incident in the Strait of Hormuz, three Iranian fishermen were injured after a fishing boat was struck in an incident involving an unidentified drone near Sirik in southern Iran's Hormozgan Province, the provincial governor's office said.
The vessel was struck while sailing about 18 nautical miles from Bondaran village in Sirik county.
The United States regularly conducts drone surveillance over the Persian Gulf and has in recent months struck targets in southern Iran that it claimed were used to disrupt navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.