Iran says third ‘offending’ supertanker hit in Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said on Monday that a third supertanker it called “offending” had been struck and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz in two days.

In a statement issued by its public relations office, the navy said the vessel was hit on Monday morning after turning off its navigation system and ignoring warnings. It alleged that, like the two previously hit tankers, the ship had tried to leave the strait and disrupt order and security in the waterway.

The statement did not identify the tanker, its flag or its operator, or say how it was struck.

The IRGC navy warned that commercial vessels and oil tankers cooperating with the US military in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf would face a “decisive response.”