Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Say 3 Oil Tankers Caught Fire in Hormuz Amid Separate Maritime Reports
Key Facts
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said 3 oil tankers caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, offering an account of explosions and sea mines along a route it described as unauthorized. It said two tankers stopped after explosions, then said a third tanker exploded after striking a mine. It added that one of the vessels was a supertanker and that another tanker was trying to cross an unauthorized route under U.S. military escort. These details remain attributed to the Revolutionary Guards and do not establish that all three tankers were hit by mines. Reuters said it was unclear whether the other reported maritime incidents in the area involved the vessels Tehran was referring to.
In a separate notice dated November 11, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said it had received a report of an incident involving a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. The agency said the crew’s condition, damage assessment and environmental impact were unknown at the time of the notice. The information did not identify the cause of the incident or its connection to the Revolutionary Guards’ account of the three tankers. On November 10, the agency had issued another notice about a tanker whose captain said it had been struck by an unknown projectile. That incident occurred 19 nautical miles northeast of Lima, Oman, while the crew was safe and no environmental impact was reported.
In a separate incident in United Arab Emirates territorial waters, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said on November 10 that one of its vessels had been attacked. The company did not identify the vessel or the party responsible, and it was unclear whether the vessel was among those cited by the Revolutionary Guards. The reports thus included an Iranian account of tankers in the strait, British reports of two separate incidents near Oman and in Hormuz, and an Emirati announcement of an attack on an ADNOC vessel. Reuters provided no evidence that these events were part of a single incident. The absence of a confirmed link between the reports leaves responsibility for and details of each incident separate in the accounts.
The incidents occurred in a maritime corridor that saw a sharp decline in oil flows during 2026. U.S. Energy Information Administration data showed that average flows of crude oil and petroleum liquids through the Strait of Hormuz were 21.6 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2025, before falling to 4.9 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2026. These figures cover two periods before the current reports and show the recorded transit level in each. On the security of shipping, Reuters said 37 vessels were attacked in October, the highest monthly total since the start of the war, citing data from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The International Maritime Organization also said it had confirmed 130 incidents in the region since the conflict began in late February, most of them attacks, with at least 25 seafarers killed.
Oil prices rebounded on November 11 after crude hit a two-month low during Tuesday’s session, when markets had been betting on de-escalation. The agency quoted a UBS analyst as saying that fading hopes for an imminent de-escalation supported prices. An analyst at Sparta Commodities said vessel attacks had increased amid uncertainty over diplomatic talks. Prices thus rose alongside the incident reports, after the previous session’s decline tied to hopes for de-escalation.
On the diplomatic track, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington had asked its partners to join efforts to protect global shipping, but noted he had received no response from his Group of Seven counterparts to his request. He added that U.S. allies believe fighting must stop before they provide minesweepers and other assistance to protect ships in the strait. Oil consultancy LSEG said increased flows through the corridor, even if an agreement were reached, would remain contingent on mine clearance, insurance costs and shipowners’ willingness to take risks. These conditions put the safety of the corridor and the cost of operating vessels among the factors determining the return of transit. Rubio gave no date for providing assistance or timetable for resuming talks.