Six tankers hit mines in two days after ignoring Iranian naval warnings and three drones strike an Israeli vessel in the Black Sea, as Brent crude approaches $117 a barrel and reports emerge that the U.S. is pressuring shipping operators to keep maritime attacks out of the headlines.

TEHRAN -- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps said on Friday that a supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of oil exploded after striking a naval mine in the Strait of Hormuz, the third tanker to do so that day and the sixth over two days.

The IRGC Navy's public relations office announced Friday that the supertanker was abandoned at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz and was burning.

The announcement followed a statement issued Thursday in which the IRGC said three violating oil tankers had exploded and caught fire over the previous 24 hours after striking mines while attempting to transit an unauthorized southern route through the strait.

Later on Thursday, Iran's Army Navy reported that two additional tankers had caught fire in the eastern Strait of Hormuz after hitting mines while operating in a "restricted and dangerous area."

The IRGC said the vessels had switched off all their radar and navigation systems and disregarded warnings from the IRGC Navy before hitting the mines.

“The unauthorized route through the Strait of Hormuz is mined, and vessel owners and crews are responsible for transiting these routes and should not pay attention to CENTCOM's delusions on social media," the IRGC statement said.

The IRGC warned that "any provocative action backed by the aggressive and terrorist U.S. military that disregards the regulations governing the strait will be met with a firm response."

British maritime agency UKMTO said late Thursday it had received a report of a vessel on fire about 25 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman, in the Strait of Hormuz.

UKMTO said the tanker was approached on its port side by a small boat that attached two explosive devices to the hull above the waterline, causing a fire in the engine room that temporarily disabled the vessel.

The new Hormuz incidents emerged amid reports that Washington has pressured maritime authorities and commercial operators to suppress reporting on attacks in the strait, in what critics describe as an effort to control the narrative and keep oil prices from spiking before the November 3 midterm elections.

Brett Erickson, a senior executive at a risk consulting firm, said the UKMTO has refrained from publishing reports on many of the incidents claimed by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, attributing the silence to U.S. pressure on vessels not to report such events so that the war with Iran stays out of headlines.

According to accounts cited by Iranian outlets, a captain of a third vessel observed another ship burning and reported it, suggesting the stricken vessel itself did not dare announce the attack due to U.S. pressure.

The narrative control stands in tension with CENTCOM's public assertions. The U.S. military command has claimed that its forces have cleared all internationally recognized primary transit routes in the strait and that thousands of commercial vessels have transited safely.

IRGC spokesman Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi challenged CENTCOM's mine-clearing assertions, writing on X: "Prove your Hormuz mine-clearing claim with independent evidence, not statements!"

The growing maritime confrontation comes at a politically sensitive moment for the Trump administration, with the U.S. midterm elections scheduled for November 3.

A sharp rise in oil prices before the midterm elections would also create additional political difficulties for the administration, particularly as higher fuel and transportation costs affect American households and businesses.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Washington had told several Persian Gulf Arab countries to prepare for a short but intense military campaign against Iran after the November 3 elections.

The growing vulnerability of commercial shipping because of the American war was highlighted by a separate incident in the Black Sea, where a container vessel operated by Israeli shipping company ZIM sank after being struck by at least three maritime drones.

The CONTSHIP JET was travelling from Haifa to Constanta, Romania, when it was attacked approximately 17 nautical miles from Cape Kaliakra, within Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone.

The vessel sank with all 421 containers and their cargo lost. The cargo reportedly included lithium-ion batteries, corrosive liquids and industrial chemicals.

The design of the attacking drones appeared to represent a previously undisclosed model, according to Israeli media reports.

The attack came amid a broader series of drone strikes against commercial shipping off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast. Reuters reported that at least six vessels had been targeted in the area during the month, with approximately 24 crew members feared dead in the wider incidents.

Iranian Army spokesman Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia said on Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz remains under the strategic control of the country's armed forces and will remain closed until the Islamic Republic's conditions have been fully met.

Tehran has maintained that its restrictions on maritime traffic are a response to the U.S.-Israeli military aggression launched on February 28, which continued for 40 days before a halt in early April.

Global oil prices rose on Friday, with Brent crude heading for a fourth consecutive monthly gain of nearly 13%, as the Hormuz incidents reinforced concerns over energy supplies.

Brent crude futures for December delivery rose $1.71, or 1.49%, to $116.59 per barrel as of 0727 GMT, while the more actively traded January contract gained $1.71 to $112.51. US West Texas Intermediate crude advanced $1.45, or 1.42%, to $103.45 per barrel.

"The continued kinetic action around the Strait of Hormuz amidst doubts of a viable diplomatic pathway are keeping oil prices elevated in expectation of an escalation of the conflict in coming weeks," said Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Marquee.

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said Israel's upcoming parliamentary election and the US midterm congressional vote could contribute to additional oil market volatility over the next several weeks, and he expected crude to trade in a higher range of $70 to $90 per barrel even after the war ends.