Iran attacks four tankers near Strait of Hormuz with mines and projectiles
· Shipping · Iran · United Arab Emirates
Between October 29 and 30, Iran attacked at least four tankers across the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters, using projectiles and hull-mounted limpet mines. The strikes hit both laden and empty vessels, tonnage owned by Qatar and the UAE, and tankers that had spent weeks operating dark. The attacks come as US President Donald Trump threatens renewed strikes against Iran, leaving the two sides in an economic standoff in which Tehran's intermittent strikes on commercial shipping are a central lever. Limpet mines had largely disappeared from the Gulf in recent years, and their return raises the risk profile for tanker operators, insurers and crews transiting one of the world's most important energy chokepoints.
Why it matters：Attacks on commercial tonnage in the world's key oil chokepoint raise war-risk insurance and freight costs and could push carriers to reroute or pause Gulf voyages.
Key points
- At least four tankers hit between October 29 and 30
- Attacks used projectiles and hull-mounted limpet mines
- Qatari- and UAE-owned vessels were among those struck
Sources (original reporting)
More stories from this day
- Brent swings wildly as conflicting US-Iran signals hit oil markets
- Shell sells stake in Woodside-operated Australian gas and LNG project for $1.45 billion
- Shell sells Australian gas and LNG stake for $1.45 billion
- Major liners resume Suez transits on Asia-Europe services
- Hapag-Lloyd and ONE warn most cargo lost on fire-hit Espirito Santo Express
- Norway detains sanctioned Chinese heavy-lift vessel over false flag