Iran's IRGC navy says oil tanker hits mine, catches fire in Strait of Hormuz

An oil tanker caught fire and exploded after striking a naval mine in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said on Sunday, according to Iranian media. The vessel violated Iran-imposed “regulations” by switching off its navigation system while transiting the waterway, the IRGC said. “An illicit oil tanker exploded and caught fire in its engine room after hitting a naval mine in the southern Strait of Hormuz,” the Fars news agency quoted the IRGC as saying. “If ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf switch off their navigation and identification systems, they will be dealt with severely and decisively.”