Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route that usually carries one-fifth of global oil supplies, continues as a container ship is reported to have hit a naval mine.

According to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy, a vessel carrying more than 2,500 containers on Wednesday attempted to transit what it described as an “unauthorised and dangerous” route. The ship caught fire after hitting a naval mine and has sunk in the south of the Strait.

In a statement, Iran’s Guards have warned local vessels and fishermen to take care.

Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz

Before the war on Iran, around 125 to 140 large commercial vessels including oil tankers, gas carriers, bunkers and container ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz every day. This came to an effective standstill on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched coordinated military airstrikes across Iran.

While traffic on the 24-mile Strait appeared to be increasing over recent months, two senior Iranian officials say that Iran is deploying new tactics to target ships sailing through the passage as it seeks to keep oil prices high and influence the US midterm elections.

“The aim is to frustrate efforts by the United States and its allies to bring down global oil prices,” one of the two officials said.

As part of the new strategy, Tehran will expand the geographical scope of its operations beyond the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Oman and waters further afield, the officials said.

Analysis by maritime security sources based on attacks reported to UKMTO and maritime security companies in the region suggest this may already be happening. They show Iran targeting ships in areas beyond the Strait of Hormuz, including waters off the coast of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, in recent days.

The second Iranian official added that Tehran would not allow Trump to bring down oil prices before the November elections.

“Just when they think they are getting close to the point where prices will fall, we will push them away from it. This is a game of chess,” the second official said. “Such vessels would be safe nowhere, even outside the Strait of Hormuz.”