Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed it attacked the tanker MV Sun Shine and threatened to pursue ships beyond the Strait of Hormuz. Euronews reports that the statement was issued on Friday 9 October. The IRGC’s claims of responsibility and a fire on board have not been independently confirmed.
According to the IRGC navy statement quoted by Euronews, the attack targeted the tanker’s engine room and propulsion system. The Iranian force claimed the vessel had attempted to use a route in the southern part of the strait that it had not authorised. The date of Friday’s statement does not, however, establish exactly when the alleged attack took place.
The IRGC’s threats extend beyond this vessel and the strait itself. It said it would pursue and punish ships using routes it considers unauthorised throughout the region. It also threatened sanctions against companies it accuses of cooperating with the US, as well as attacks on their ships. These are threats of future action, not confirmation that further attacks have already taken place.
Conflicting signals for shipping
On the same day, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had cleared mines from the main shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz and opened them to vessels not breaching US maritime sanctions against Iran, Euronews reports. Both that declaration and the Iranian warnings represent the positions of parties to the conflict. Neither provides grounds for assurances that passage through the strait is safe.
Euronews also cites a notice from the UK’s maritime security monitoring centre, UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), about a gas carrier transporting liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) being hit. That incident took place on Friday, 13 nautical miles west of Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates. According to UKMTO, the vessel was struck by unidentified projectiles, and a large fire that broke out on board was subsequently brought under control.
No perpetrator has been identified in the attack on the gas carrier. The incident should therefore not be attributed to the IRGC or conflated with its claimed attack on MV Sun Shine. The report that the fire was brought under control concerns the gas carrier described in the UKMTO notice, not the tanker named in the Iranian statement.
