Iran Blames US for Hormuz Tensions, Tankers Hit Mines

HSBC Group CEO Georges Elhedery stated on Tuesday that the Strait of Hormuz could become redundant within five years as Gulf nations invest in alternative pipelines, ports, and logistics networks.

Elhedery said the Iran war exposed risks of relying on the narrow waterway for energy exports. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards' Navy stated on Tuesday that two violating oilers caught fire and halted south of the Strait of Hormuz after hitting Iranian naval mines. The statement also said a US drone was downed by Iran on Monday night.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday accused the United States of being responsible for insecurity and tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. Araghchi urged countries to resolve regional issues through diplomacy. He stated Iran welcomes any initiative that leads to security from within without the presence of foreign forces. Iran has sought to blockade the Strait of Hormuz during the war launched by the US and Israel in February.

Pakistan has played a key mediating role in unsuccessful attempts to end the war, helping broker a short-lived memorandum of understanding in June. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned Monday that it would identify new military targets and introduce new weapons, drawing attention to undersea internet cables crossing the Strait of Hormuz. Guard spokesman Hossein Mohebbi said seven major communications cables passed beneath the waterway, describing them as vital to international commercial traffic.

Mohebbi did not explicitly say Iran had decided to attack the cables. His remarks followed a warning this month from Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, that communications cables, data centers, and artificial intelligence facilities associated with American interests could be targeted if fighting resumed. Such attacks could disrupt banking, telecommunications, and cloud computing services in Gulf countries.

Telecommunications research firm TeleGeography identifies the Asia-Africa-Europe 1, FALCON, and Gulf Bridge International networks among the cable systems crossing the strait. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) already operate crude oil pipelines that bypass the strait. Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline transports crude oil from Abqaiq to Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.