Iran's navy says a tanker hit sea mines east of the Strait of Hormuz
Talks to reopen the strait have stalled, and Iranian state TV says the US blockade of Iran must be lifted first.
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Map: The Gulf and Hormuz, marking Strait of Hormuz
Iran's navy says a tanker it describes as violating its rules hit sea mines east of the Strait of Hormuz. The report came ahead of the US market open on Tuesday, October 27.
The incident adds to a dispute over whether traffic through the strait has recovered. On October 23, Iran said it had halted illicit transit. Trump said flows now exceed pre-conflict levels and that Iran is making up incidents.
A confirmed mine hit would cut against the view that transit has returned to normal. It would also extend a run of fires, sinkings and strikes in the area since late September. No agreed framework yet trades a lifted blockade for a reopened strait. Unless this causes confirmed damage or casualties, it is likely to be treated as one more isolated report, as recent ones have been. Even so, it keeps the risk premium in crude oil prices in place, and it does not back claims that traffic has returned toward its pre-conflict pace of roughly 125 vessels.
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