Ship strikes in and around the Strait of Hormuz have hit a record level this month, already exceeding the total reported during March, when the Iran war was at its height, according to maritime tracking data.
The latest incidents followed a warning Saturday from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that the Strait of Hormuz was “closed.” Reports indicated that at least five additional tanker attacks had occurred in the preceding 24 hours.
“We maintain full control and intelligence oversight over the area east of the Strait of Hormuz, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman,” the IRGC said in a statement.
The new attacks included a tanker hit by a rocket-propelled grenade launched from a small boat, marking a method not previously reported during the current wave of incidents, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
A supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of crude oil also caught fire Saturday. The IRGC said the vessel had struck a mine while following an “unauthorized” route. US Central Command, however, said ships were being hit by projectiles and that it had cleared mines from the strait.
Iran’s navy separately said an oil tanker caught fire and was left immobilized in the Gulf of Oman. UKMTO reported that two other tankers attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz were attacked Friday.
In the week ending Friday, 12 vessels were attacked — the highest weekly total reported by UKMTO since the Iran war began on Feb. 28.
Ten of the incidents took place in the Strait of Hormuz, while one occurred in the Persian Gulf and another in the Gulf of Oman. The vessels included eight oil tankers and four container ships.
One ship sank, while nine others were reported damaged. Three crew members were injured, and two more were listed as missing after a drone strike hit a Nicaragua-flagged vessel Thursday.
Six of the week’s attacks were recorded on a single day, Oct. 11.
UKMTO said it was “struggling to accurately report true number of attacks.” The agency added that the actual number of strikes in the Strait of Hormuz was probably higher, as “a majority of vessels attacked” had declined to report them.
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The location of last week’s attacks was particularly concerning: Most took place close to Oman’s coast, along an alternative shipping route that the United States had increasingly used to avoid Iranian strikes.
Iran has described that route as “unauthorized” and demanded that vessels sail closer to its shores as it seeks to tighten its control over the strategically vital waterway.
The IRGC navy said the attacks would not be “limited to the Strait of Hormuz,” announcing a “new deployment formation” across the surrounding area, according to Iranian state media.
One expert said Tehran had “evolved its strategy” by targeting ships near the coastlines of Gulf Arab states and in the Gulf of Oman. He said the attacks had become “near daily or multiple attacks every single day.”
“The aim here is to stop the ships going through and to deter others,” Martin Kelly, CEO of Orbital Risk Intelligence, told the BBC.
Since the beginning of October, a total of 22 ship strikes have been reported — nearly twice the monthly average recorded in previous months.
“If America leaves the region, the Strait of Hormuz will reopen and collective security will be established with the participation of the region’s countries, and the global economy will improve. If it doesn’t leave, we’ll expel it,” Iranian Army spokesperson Mohammad Akraminia wrote on X.
Iran has threatened to drive US forces out of the region while asserting control over the critical shipping corridor, directly challenging Washington’s claim that the waterway remains secure.
“Let me be clear — the Strait of Hormuz is controlled by the United States and our regional partners, not Iran,” US CENTCOM Chief Brad Cooper said in a video message late Friday.
Cooper said 400 ships had transited the strait and 100 million barrels of oil had moved through it over the past week, despite the attacks.
But the data shows oil exports have fallen this month.
An average of just under 12 million barrels of oil a day flowed through the strait during the seven days ending Oct. 13 — below the 15 million barrels reported at the end of September and the pre-war baseline of 17 million barrels a day.
