Iran Guards say they struck vessel in Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say they have struck a vessel that was attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that is crucial to global energy flows.

Iran has imposed a blockade on the strait since the United States and Israel launched strikes against the Islamic Republic in February, triggering the Middle East war.

The blockade has been met with a US counter-blockade of Iranian ports, and US forces routinely escort vessels crossing the strait.

Iran has since the start of the war frequently targeted vessels crossing Hormuz without its permission.

The Guards’ navy says in a statement published on the force’s news platform, Sepah News, that “a supertanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz and caught fire.”

The ship targeted today tried to sail through the area “by disabling its transponders” and “by ignoring warnings from the Guards’ Navy,” the statement says.

Ali Ozmaei, the Guards’ naval commander, warned this weekend that any vessel disabling its transponder to avoid detection while crossing the strait would be considered “hostile” and face a “severe” response.