Three oil tankers exploded and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after striking mines, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Friday—but major pieces of the account remain disputed or unverified.
The clearest independently reported development came from Oman: its Maritime Security Center said 25 crew members were evacuated from a burning Panama-flagged tanker after an attack approximately 1.6 nautical miles off Musandam Governorate. Oman did not publicly establish that the vessel was one of the three tankers described by Iran.
What Iran is claiming
Iranian state media, citing the Revolutionary Guard, reported that a supertanker carrying more than 2 million barrels of oil struck a naval mine, exploded and caught fire while traveling through what authorities called an unauthorized route.
The Guard said that vessel was the third tanker to explode Friday after allegedly attempting to cross the strait without Tehran’s permission. It also claimed that two of the vessels had turned off navigation and positioning systems and ignored radio warnings.
Iran did not identify the three ships or provide details about their crews, according to The Associated Press. AP said it could not independently verify the Revolutionary Guard’s account.
The U.S. disputes the mine narrative
The U.S. military denied Iran’s claims about naval mines in the internationally recognized primary transit routes. American forces said those shipping lanes had been cleared of sea mines.
That creates two sharply different versions of the same emergency. Tehran portrays the fires as the result of ships violating its restrictions and striking defensive mines. Washington says the main legal transit corridors are clear. Neither account, by itself, explains the incident Oman reported off Musandam.
Reuters reported, citing security sources, that at least one tanker in the strait was hit by limpet mines. Limpet mines attach directly to a vessel’s hull, a different scenario from a ship sailing into a floating or anchored naval mine. That reporting supports the existence of a serious attack but does not independently confirm Iran’s claim that three tankers struck mines.
Oman’s rescue is the firmest known fact
Oman’s announcement supplies the most concrete operational details so far: a Panama-flagged ship was attacked, it caught fire, and 25 people were taken off the vessel. No deaths were reported in that statement.
The location is significant. Musandam sits beside the narrow entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, the passage connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. Tankers carrying oil and liquefied natural gas from Gulf producers routinely depend on the waterway, making even a limited attack capable of disrupting shipping schedules, insurance costs and energy markets.
Why the uncertainty matters
The difference between three ships accidentally entering mined waters and one or more vessels being deliberately targeted with attached explosives is not technical trivia. It changes who may be responsible, whether commercial routes remain safe and what protective measures shipping companies must take next.
The conflicting claims also arrive during an active U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Tehran has repeatedly warned vessels against crossing without its authorization and has asserted control over much of the strait. The United States rejects that claim and says recognized international routes remain available.
What investigators still need to establish
Authorities have not publicly named the affected tankers, identified their owners, disclosed the condition of every crew or determined whether oil entered the water. Investigators also need physical evidence from the damaged hulls to distinguish between naval mines, limpet mines and other possible weapons.
Until those details emerge, the safest conclusion is narrower than the most dramatic claims: at least one tanker burned near Oman and 25 crew members were evacuated, while Iran says two additional tankers were involved. The scale, cause and responsibility remain under investigation.
