The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence said two Emirati oil tankers were struck by Iranian cruise missiles in the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in the death of one crew member and injuries to eight others. The ministry identified the tankers as the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah and said they were hit in the southern lane of the strait while in Omani territorial waters.
According to the UAE ministry, the fatality was an Indian seafarer aboard the Mombasa. Of the eight wounded crew members, four were described as seriously injured. The ministry said six of the wounded were Indian nationals and two were Ukrainian nationals. Fires broke out aboard both vessels after the strikes, causing material damage; authorities said the fires had been brought under control.
In its public response the UAE condemned what it called a "blatant attack" and said it retained "its full right to respond to this escalation". The ministry framed the incident as a significant escalation in the strategic waterway.
Separately, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement saying two "offending" supertankers had been hit and disabled in the Strait of Hormuz after allegedly ignoring repeated warnings, turning off navigation systems and attempting to pass through what the Guards described as a mined route. The IRGC statement did not identify the vessels by name and did not explicitly say whether it was referring to the same tankers cited by the UAE ministry.
In that statement the IRGC accused the United States of "inciting vessels to use an illegal route" and warned that cooperation with the "aggressor enemy" would bring damage, delays in reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a global energy crisis.
Adding to the complexity of accounts from the waterway, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency reported that a tanker had been struck by an unknown projectile while travelling 40 nautical miles northeast of Oman’s Qalhat. UKMTO said the vessel’s master reported the projectile hit the starboard-side engine room and that all crew aboard that tanker were safe. It could not be immediately verified whether the UKMTO report referred to the same incident described by the UAE’s Ministry of Defence.
These incidents come amid weeks of heightened tensions that the reporting links to a broader conflict. The account states that the escalation followed a war that began on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. It further says the U.S. military carried out a third consecutive night of strikes against Iran on Monday, while President Donald Trump reinstated a blockade of Iranian shipping and proposed charging a 20% fee to guard the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s top joint military command is quoted as saying the United States had no role in determining the future of the waterway and would not be allowed to intervene. The reporting notes that the conflict has destabilised the Gulf and spread across the region, with Iran mounting attacks on U.S. bases in multiple countries, and has called into question an interim U.S.-Iranian agreement signed last month to reopen the strait and halt hostilities.
Before the conflict began, the reporting states, roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and gas traffic transited the Strait of Hormuz each day, delivering more than 15 million barrels of fuel to global markets with an estimated daily value of at least $1.2 billion. The recent incidents and competing accounts from state and maritime actors highlight immediate humanitarian impacts for crews and potential disruptions to a critical global energy artery.
Operational and market context
From a transportation and logistics perspective, the strikes affected two named Emirati oil tankers and caused onboard fires and material damage. Casualties and injuries among multinational crews have been reported, and authorities have indicated the fires are under control. Statements by military actors and maritime agencies differ on the sequence of events and the identity of the vessels targeted, leaving uncertainty around the full chain of events.
The situation remains fluid as maritime authorities, state militaries and commercial vessels navigate competing narratives and potential security measures in the Strait of Hormuz.