Iran and U.S. Trade Claims Over Tanker Fires in Strait of Hormuz

Iran's Revolutionary Guard said Friday that tankers caught fire while trying to leave the Strait of Hormuz by routes Tehran does not authorize. U.S. military officials dispute Tehran's version of events on the waterway, and the claims could not be independently verified.

The incidents come as Qatari mediators returned to Tehran to push for a deal that would end the war between Iran and the United States, according to Euronews.

What Iran says happened

According to Iranian state media, the Guard said Oct. 30 that tankers had run into trouble on routes it considers unauthorized in the eastern and western parts of the strait. Euronews reported that the Guard described three tankers, all of which were later stopped in the southern waters of the strait. State media said the ships had switched off their navigation and positioning systems and were trying to leave with U.S. military support, and that they kept sailing despite repeated radio warnings.

The Independent, citing the Guard's navy, reported that three tankers caught fire and exploded, and that one vessel carrying 2 million barrels of crude oil struck a mine. The Guard gave no details on the ships' identities, flags, the exact cause of the incidents or the condition of their crews.

Iranian state media also said Iranian forces downed and captured a U.S. MQM-170 drone over Qeshm island, and that a U.S. unmanned vessel was destroyed in the eastern strait.

What the U.S. says

Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, repeated that the strait's main shipping lanes have been cleared of Iranian naval mines, Euronews reported. He also said Iran's navy has been destroyed and that Guard forces are no longer operating in the waterway. According to Cooper, U.S. forces remain in the region to keep major shipping routes open and secure.

CENTCOM rejected the claim that Iran had seized an American drone. On the unmanned vessel, the command wrote on X that all U.S. military unmanned surface vessels in the Middle East are accounted for, including a squadron of sea drones on patrol in the strait.

What remains unclear

The picture is muddied by other reports. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said a small boat approached an oil tanker Thursday evening and attached two explosive devices to its hull. The blasts started a fire in the engine room and briefly disabled the ship, which the Financial Times identified as the Louise 1. UKMTO said the fire was put out, the crew was safe, no pollution was reported and the vessel resumed its voyage. Euronews said it was not clear who was responsible or whether the attack was linked to the Guard's claims.

Oman's Maritime Security Center separately reported that the Royal Navy of Oman evacuated 25 crew members from a Panama-flagged commercial ship that was attacked and caught fire off the coast of Musandam. The center did not name the vessel or those responsible.

The Guard had claimed Thursday that three tankers struck naval mines, and Iran's regular military said another tanker caught fire in the eastern strait. Euronews noted it was unclear whether Friday's two tankers were new vessels or among those already reported.

What's at stake for shipping and diplomacy

Behind the incidents is a dispute over routes. Iran wants vessels to coordinate with its authorities and use lanes closer to the strait's northern shores, Euronews reported. Ships trying to avoid Iranian control have used the southern route instead. For the crews and operators of commercial vessels, the question of which lane is safe is now at the center of the standoff.

On the diplomatic front, CBS News, citing a source familiar with the talks, reported signs of progress and said Iran was expected to answer a revised Qatari proposal by the end of the week. Axios reported that the mediators are seeking common ground on inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities and sanctions relief, though disagreements remain over the conditions for formally opening negotiations.

The effort aims to head off a return of large-scale U.S. strikes, which President Donald Trump has raised repeatedly in recent weeks. Axios also reported that the United States and Israel were weighing options for extensive strikes on Iran after the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections, and the Associated Press, citing two diplomats, reported that Washington warned several regional allies about possible renewed attacks and Iranian retaliation, although Trump had not made a final decision. Speaking to a Kansas City radio station on Friday, Trump said the war would end soon.

Around Prague, based on reporting by Euronews, The Independent