Two sailors are missing and 23 others have been rescued following an attack on the oil tanker El Gaia in the Strait of Hormuz, Oman's Maritime Security Centre reported Tuesday. The Panama-flagged vessel was being towed to an Omani port after a fire erupted in its engine room, occurring approximately 1.3 nautical miles north of the Musandam peninsula.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards stated Monday that the tanker struck naval mines and caught fire while traversing a route they described as restricted and unsafe. However, the U.S. military contradicted this, asserting that the Iranian report was inaccurate and that the tanker was hit by an Iranian missile last month and subsequently by a drone over the weekend.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations center indicated it received a report of a fire on a vessel struck by an unknown projectile in the early hours of Sunday while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
This incident follows a similar claim made by Iran earlier this month regarding an attack that resulted in the deaths of two Filipino sailors on a Saudi-owned oil supertanker, Sidr, in the same vital waterway. While the Revolutionary Guards reported the Sidr hit a naval mine, Saudi authorities stated it was targeted by Iran, and maritime security firms indicated it was struck by projectiles north of Musandam.
According to the International Maritime Organization, at least 22 seafarers have died in 79 confirmed incidents in the Strait of Hormuz and the wider Middle East region since the conflict involving the U.S. and Israel against Iran began in late February. The Strait of Hormuz, critical for approximately one-fifth of global oil and gas shipments, has faced disruptions due to Iranian missile and drone attacks on commercial vessels and a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports. A preliminary agreement in June between the U.S. and Iran to end hostilities and reopen the strait collapsed within weeks amid renewed Iranian attacks on shipping and the reinstatement of the U.S. blockade. Iran has maintained its position on retaining some control over the waterway, targeting vessels that use a southern route through Omani waters to avoid its preferred route through Iranian waters.
