Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy claimed Thursday that it simultaneously struck and set ablaze four vessels conducting ship to ship oil transfers in the northern Persian Gulf, the war's first strike on such transfers, while three other ships caught fire and halted after hitting naval mines in the western Strait of Hormuz. The IRGC warned that "the scope of the response will extend to the aggressor's bases in the region" if Washington keeps backing commercial transits along routes Tehran deems prohibited. If verified, the seven ships would top the previous single day high of six vessel attacks on Oct. 11 and bring total strikes on Hormuz shipping in 2026 to more than 130.
The IRGC did not name the seven vessels, and UK Maritime Trade Operations did not log the strikes, though the International Maritime Organization listed several ships in its report. UKMTO has recorded more than 28 attacks in the strait and surrounding waters in October, saying a majority of targeted vessels are not reporting incidents, while independent tracking accounts identified the tankers Soyia, Ixora and On Phoenix as hit near Al Faw, Iraq, and the Al Dasma near Bukha, Oman. Despite the attacks, Kpler estimated the corridor moved 14 million barrels a day last week, or 82% of prewar volume, while Morgan Stanley put total Middle East crude exports at 17 million barrels a day, about 94% of prewar levels.