Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said on Friday, Oct. 30, that oil tankers had caught fire and been stopped in the Strait of Hormuz. The claim came as Qatari mediators flew back to Tehran for another round of talks meant to end the war between Iran and the United States.
The Guard said three tankers had run into trouble on routes Tehran considers unauthorized, in the eastern and western parts of the strait. All were afterward stopped in the southern waters. Iranian state media quoted the Guard as saying the ships had switched off their navigation and positioning systems and were trying to leave on routes Iran opposes, with U.S. military backing. It said they ignored repeated radio warnings.
No names, flags, cause or crew condition were given.
A second incident, and a third
A separate attack may or may not be linked. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, or UKMTO, said a small boat approached an oil tanker on Thursday evening and fixed two explosive devices to its hull above the waterline. They went off, starting a fire in the engine room and briefly disabling the ship. The Financial Times named the vessel as the Louise 1. It was about 25 nautical miles (46 kilometers) northeast of Khasab, Oman.
The fire was put out, all crew were safe, and no pollution was reported, UKMTO said. The tanker later continued to its next port. It appeared to be the first reported successful use of limpet mines against a ship in the strait since the U.S.-Iran war began in February 2026. Nobody was identified as responsible.
Oman’s Maritime Security Center also reported that the Royal Navy of Oman evacuated 25 crew from a Panama-flagged commercial vessel that was attacked and caught fire about 1.6 nautical miles off the coast of Musandam. The crew received medical care. The ship and attackers were not named.
On Thursday, Oct. 29, the Guard had claimed three tankers hit naval mines on the southern route, causing explosions and fires, and Iran’s regular military said another tanker burned in the eastern strait. Agence France-Presse reported that Iranian officials said all four ships were in prohibited and unsafe areas. Whether the two tankers in Friday’s statement were new or among those four was unclear.
CENTCOM pushes back
Adm. Brad Cooper, who commands U.S. Central Command, repeated that the main shipping lanes had been cleared of Iranian mines. He said Iran’s navy had been destroyed, that Guard forces were no longer operating in the waterway, and that U.S. forces were staying to keep major routes open.
CENTCOM rejected a Guard claim from Thursday that it had taken control of an American MQM-170 Outlaw drone in the western strait. Iranian sources said an American unmanned surface vessel was destroyed in the eastern strait on Friday. The U.S. military had neither confirmed nor denied that.
Behind the incidents is a dispute over routes. Iran wants ships to coordinate with its authorities and use lanes nearer the northern shore. Ships trying to avoid Iranian control have used the southern route.
Talks and threats
CBS News, citing a source familiar with the negotiations, reported signs of progress and said Iran was expected to answer a revised Qatari proposal by the end of the week. Axios reported that mediators were looking for common ground on inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities and sanctions relief, with disagreement lingering over the conditions for formally opening negotiations.
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. The Associated Press, citing two diplomats, reported that Washington had warned several regional allies about possible renewed attacks and Iranian retaliation, though President Donald Trump had made no final decision.
Speaking Friday to a Kansas City radio station, Trump said the war would end “soon.” He did not say whether through a deal or force, and repeated that Washington wants guarantees Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon.
