TEHRAN, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- The navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Tuesday that three "violating" oil tankers exploded earlier in the day while transiting an "unauthorized" route in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement on the IRGC's official news outlet Sepah News, the navy said the tankers, which had switched off their navigation and identification systems, caught fire after hitting naval mines.
It added that the vessels were abandoned off the strait's southern coasts and "are burning," stressing that Iranian regulations for the Strait of Hormuz have been repeatedly announced to all vessels via radio stations and the IRGC navy's official announcements.
The navy warned that disregarding those regulations or cooperating with the "aggressive" U.S. Army to transit unauthorized routes within the strait will result in such incidents.
In another statement on Tuesday, the IRGC said two U.S. low-cost uncrewed combat attack system (LUCAS) drones were struck by its air defense forces over the southern port city of Bandar-e Khamir within the preceding hours.
The IRGC said late Monday that its air defense systems had intercepted three U.S. drones in the country's southern airspace, identifying two of them as MQM-170 Outlaw drones, which it said were intercepted over Qeshm Island, and the third as an MQ-9 Reaper, shot down in waters east of the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States attacked Iran's strategic Qeshm Island on Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. officials.
The attacks were the latest in "a series of limited strikes Washington has secretly carried out against the country in recent weeks as President Trump touted the possibility of a diplomatic deal," the report said.
Several explosions were reported by Iranian media early Tuesday on Qeshm Island. The blasts of unknown nature were also heard by residents on southern Hengam Island and in the port city of Bandar Abbas, according to Iran's semi-official Fars news agency. ■
