Iran's IRGC Navy says four ships were hit in the Persian Gulf and three struck mines near Hormuz, warns U.S.

As of 1:27 a.m. ET, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy says four ships were hit simultaneously and are burning in the north-central Persian Gulf while transferring oil cargoes from ship to ship, and that three other ships hit mines west of the Strait of Hormuz and caught fire. It also warned that the confrontation could extend to bases in the region.

The IRGC Navy's public relations office made the claims in a statement published in Persian on Sepah News, the Guards' official news site, at 12:15 a.m. ET Thursday, Oct. 22 (7:45 a.m. Tehran time). The statement does not name any of the ships.

What the IRGC Navy said

The statement, translated from Persian by GROKsiNEWS.com, said that following earlier warnings to "violating maritime companies, which were deceived by the aggressor U.S. military and passed through illegal routes," IRGC naval forces tracked and pursued four ships that had previously used what it called an illegal route.

The forces "discovered them conducting ship-to-ship transfers of oil cargoes in the north-central Persian Gulf, and all four ships were hit simultaneously and are burning," the statement said.

"Also last night, three violating ships suffered an accident and fire after hitting mines west of the Strait of Hormuz and were stopped," it said.

The statement said the IRGC Navy's sailors "continue to manage and control the Strait of Hormuz."

Warning to the United States

"The insistence of the arrogant regime of America on inciting vessels to pass through the illegal mined passage has increased maritime incidents day by day, and the aggressor U.S. military must know that if this trend continues, the scope of confrontation will extend to the aggressor's bases in the region. This is a serious warning," the statement said.

The IRGC Navy has made several claims since mid-October that ships struck mines in the Strait of Hormuz, as GROKsiNEWS.com has reported.

What is not known

The identities of the seven ships. The statement does not name them.

How the four ships in the Persian Gulf were hit. The statement says they "were hit simultaneously" but does not say by what or by whom.

The ships' exact locations. The statement gives only the north-central Persian Gulf and west of the Strait of Hormuz.

The condition of the ships' crews. The statement does not mention crews or casualties.

Which bases the warning refers to. The statement mentions only "the aggressor's bases in the region."