Ship catches fire in the Strait of Hormuz; another tanker hit by a projectile

A ship leaving the Strait of Hormuz caught fire on the night of Thursday, 29 October 2026, about 25 nautical miles northeast of the Omani port of Khasab. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre (UKMTO), citing a third-party report, said the cause of the fire, the condition of the crew, the extent of the damage and its environmental impact were not yet clear.

Hours earlier, the security officer of a shipping company had reported to the same centre that a tanker had been hit by an unknown projectile while leaving the Strait of Hormuz. That report mentioned no injuries to the crew and no marine pollution. UKMTO has not said whether the burning ship is the same tanker that was hit, and neither vessel has been named.

The IRGC's claim about mines

The navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed in the same hours that three tankers had caught fire after hitting mines on the "unauthorised southern route" of the Strait of Hormuz, and that another ship had struck a mine in the eastern part of the waterway. The IRGC said the ships had switched off their radar and navigation systems and ignored its warnings, and warned that any US military action would meet a "decisive response". The IRGC has named no ship, and no independent source has so far confirmed that four ships hit mines.

This is not the first time the IRGC has reported tankers hitting mines. US Central Command said earlier that the main shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz had been cleared.

Tension as Washington weighs its decision

The new incident came as Donald Trump considers new military options against the Islamic Republic, while the Islamic Republic keeps repeating its earlier conditions for ending the war, a subject DIAR covered in its report on Mojtaba Khamenei's call to end "neither war nor peace". US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also dismissed the Pentagon's top planner on Wednesday.

US Vice President JD Vance said at an event in Fort Worth, Texas, on Thursday that Donald Trump would not let the conflict with the Islamic Republic become an endless war, noting that it has now lasted seven months.

Two maritime incidents took place in one night on the outbound route of the Strait of Hormuz, as the IRGC claimed four ships had hit mines.