Tankers Hit Near Hormuz Over Weekend as U.S. Disables Cargo Ship Running Iran Blockade

Shipping around the Strait of Hormuz took another beating over the weekend. Meanwhile the U.S. Navy kept enforcing its blockade of Iranian ports from the other side.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) logged two new tanker strikes. An outbound tanker was hit on its port side by an unknown projectile at about 1920 UTC on Saturday, Oct. 10, and a fire broke out. A second outbound tanker was struck the same way on Sunday, Oct. 11, and sustained damage. Crews were reported safe in both cases. UKMTO identified neither vessel and did not name who was responsible.

Indian crews caught in the middle

India's Ministry of External Affairs said Sunday that the tanker MT Petro Dolphin was possibly hit by a drone. Two of the 11 Indian seafarers aboard are missing. A second ship, MT Valthera, was struck by an unidentified projectile and caught fire, but all 11 Indian crew members are safe.

The Indian Embassy in Muscat is working with Omani authorities and the ship management companies on the rescue effort, the ministry said. New Delhi condemned the attacks and called for de-escalation through dialogue. "Attacks on commercial vessels, seafarers and civilian infrastructure must cease," the statement read.

Separately, the UAE's National Guard said Saturday it rescued 22 people after an oil tanker fire. All were Indian citizens. India is one of the world's largest suppliers of merchant seafarers.

Strikes are spreading beyond the strait

On Friday, Oct. 9, the Panama-flagged crude carrier GEM NO.2 was hit by a projectile while anchored about 13 nautical miles west of Al Jazeera in the UAE. The fire was put out. Two days earlier, another tanker was hit by multiple projectiles off Qatar.

CNN counts more than a dozen strikes on shipping since the end of September. It says the attacks have cut the volume of oil moving through the strait and kept crude above $100 a barrel.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy says a supertanker capable of carrying about 2 million barrels hit a naval mine over the weekend. The IRGC says the ship had its navigation system switched off and was using a route Tehran had not authorized. It called this the third vessel to strike mines on that "prohibited route" since Saturday. The IRGC statement did not name the ship or its flag.

IRGC chief Ahmed Vahidi posted on X: "The Strait of Hormuz is Iran's strategic red line." The IRGC Navy has warned that ships running with navigation systems off will be treated as "hostile vessels."

The maritime security firm Ambrey said the IRGC Navy also told six vessels anchored about 16 miles off Ras al Khaimah in the UAE to leave immediately. UKMTO said ships in UAE waters were directed by VHF radio to move from their anchorages. Iran had recently avoided targeting the UAE.

The U.S. side of the ledger

U.S. Central Command said an American fighter jet struck the stern of the Panama-flagged cargo vessel Ocean Molica, also known as Arika Sun, in the Gulf of Oman on Oct. 10. CENTCOM said the strike disabled the ship's propulsion after its crew ignored repeated warnings and tried to run the blockade.

CENTCOM says its forces have redirected 130 ships since the blockade began and destroyed 13 that were violating it or were part of what it calls the IRGC's multibillion-dollar shadow network. "We will swiftly act against any vessels trying to run the blockade," CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said on X.

The two governments describe the strait in opposite terms. Tehran calls control of Hormuz non-negotiable and says no outside power may interfere with it. Washington says free navigation in international waters is inviolable, and the Gulf states that depend on the strait for trade say the same.

How it got here

The U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran on Feb. 28, according to Anadolu's account of the timeline. Iran answered with missile and drone attacks and effectively closed the strait, and Washington later imposed the blockade on Iranian ports. The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on freedom of navigation in June, but implementation stalled over security disagreements.

Iran announced on July 12 that it had closed the strait again after U.S. attacks resumed on July 8. CENTCOM said in late August that shipping lanes had reopened after U.S. forces cleared Iranian mines. The mine claims this weekend put that declaration in doubt.

Trump's midterm pledge

President Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday, Oct. 8: "We will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the Midterm Elections to be held in the United States on November 3rd." He said his administration is "having productive discussions" with Tehran and that his main goal is keeping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Trump did not link the pledge to fuel costs. CNN's analysis, however, says rising energy prices could factor in Republican chances of losing the House, the Senate, or both.

Trump also told Fox News he personally believes Iran was behind the Sept. 30 attempt to crash a Tel Aviv-bound flydubai flight, which landed safely in Saudi Arabia after passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot. No source in the reporting presents evidence tying Iran to that incident.

Two Indian seafarers from the Petro Dolphin remain missing, and the embassy in Muscat is still coordinating with Omani authorities on the search.