The Panama-flagged oil tanker EL GAIA exploded Monday night near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The IRGC Navy said the incident occurred after the vessel struck naval mines in the area, triggering a major emergency in the strategic maritime passage.
According to an official statement from Iran’s naval forces, the tanker was attempting to pass “through an area closed to navigation south of the Strait of Hormuz.”
After the initial explosion, efforts to contain the emergency were unsuccessful, with the entire tanker eventually engulfed in flames.
