The Strait of Hormuz remains under the control of Iranian forces, and vessels attempting to transit the strategic waterway through unauthorized routes risk coming under attack. Ships seeking to use unauthorized passages also face the danger of naval mines.
Since the beginning of the US-Israeli war against Iran, the Iranian Armed Forces have closed the Strait of Hormuz, warning that any vessel attempting to illegally cross the strategic chokepoint would face attacks.
On June 17, Iran and the United States reached a memorandum of understanding (MoU), with Pakistan acting as a mediator. Under Article 5 of the agreement, Iran assumed responsibility for reopening and managing the strait.
However, the United States subsequently sought to undermine Iran's sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz by imposing a naval blockade in violation of the agreement aimed at ending the war. The move prompted Iran to close the waterway indefinitely.
According to UKMTO data, at least 35 attacks on shipping were reported in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz during October, making it the month with the highest number of attacks since the beginning of the war. The figure exceeded the 30 attacks recorded in March.
UKMTO cautioned that its reported figures may not represent the actual number of incidents, as many vessels targeted in attacks do not report them to the agency. Therefore, the actual number of attacks could be higher.
US President Donald Trump has claimed that the US Navy has removed or detonated all naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, urging vessels to use the waterway and repeatedly describing it as open and safe.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), however, has repeatedly warned that the unauthorized routes proposed by the United States are unsafe. IRGC officials have also stressed that vessel owners and crews will be held responsible for any attempts to use these routes in defiance of Iranian warnings.
In a statement on Friday, the IRGC Navy announced that two tankers attempting to cross the waterway through an unauthorized route had been stopped following separate incidents.
The IRGC Navy further stated that a supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of oil had struck a naval mine while attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz through an unauthorized route.
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