TEHRAN – The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and Army Navy reported a fresh series of operations in and around the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday and Friday, announcing that several oil tankers attempting to navigate routes declared unauthorized by the Islamic Republic struck naval mines and caught fire.

The IRGC Navy said on Friday that two additional oil tankers had struck mines and been stopped in the strategic waterway. According to a statement carried by Tasnim News Agency, one vessel was hit in the eastern part of the strait and the other inside the waterway itself.

The IRGC said both tankers had switched off their navigation and identification systems while attempting to leave through an unauthorized passage with the support of the aggressor and terrorist U.S. military.

Both vessels caught fire after striking mines, the statement said, adding that attempts by U.S. Central Command to force ships through unauthorized and mined routes would result in "repeated and humiliating failures."

The IRGC Navy reiterated that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until Iran's seven conditions were fulfilled.

Thursday's announcements described a series of separate maritime incidents involving five oil tankers and a tugboat.

In its first statement, the IRGC Public Relations Office said two oil tankers and a tugboat had caught fire in separate incidents during the previous night.

According to the statement, a large tanker attempting to use the unauthorized passage south of the Strait of Hormuz struck a naval mine, caught fire and came to a halt.

In a separate incident, another supertanker caught fire while leaving the route in the eastern part of the strait. A tugboat that approached to extinguish the blaze also caught fire, the IRGC said.

The IRGC said their naval electronic warfare units had also taken control of two U.S.-made LUCAS drones.

The IRGC said Washington is encouraging vessels to disregard Iranian maritime restrictions and enter mined waterways, stating that the resulting damage would impose enormous insurance costs on the United States and its regional allies.

The Iranian Army Navy subsequently announced three further tanker incidents on Thursday. In a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency, it said an oil tanker travelling through an unsafe area east of the strait had struck a naval mine and caught fire.

The Army said the vessel had switched off its identification and navigation systems, describing its passage as a violation of the restrictions announced by Iran.

A subsequent statement reported that two additional tankers had struck mines and caught fire around midday in the same general area.

The Army warned shipowners that the Strait of Hormuz was unsafe and closed to vessels attempting to navigate without coordination with Iranian authorities. It stressed that any war against Iran would ultimately end in the defeat of its adversaries.

In another announcement published on Friday, the IRGC said its Aerospace Force had brought down two additional American-made MQM-170 reconnaissance drones over Qeshm Island in southern Iran.

According to Tasnim, the two drones were intercepted in separate operations on Thursday night using the IRGC’s electronic warfare systems. The announcement brought the number of MQM-170 drones intercepted over Qeshm to six, according to the IRGC.

The IRGC also referred to their earlier interception of an American MQ-9 drone over the eastern Strait of Hormuz, which they identified as the 55th MQ-9 destroyed by Iranian air defences.

Iranian Army spokesman Brigadier General Muhammad Akraminia delivered a further warning on Friday, declaring that Washington's acceptance of Iran's seven conditions is the only way to secure the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Akraminia said renewed American aggression or military adventurism would not lead to the reopening of the strategic waterway.

He referred to directives issued by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei during a meeting with senior military commanders, stressing the need for sustained combat readiness, an immediate response to threats and the mobilization of Iran's military capabilities.

Akraminia said the Armed Forces are required to deliver an effective response capable of deterring further aggression and making any aggressor regret its actions.

He also highlighted the Leader's directive concerning a response without geographical restrictions, stating that American military assets beyond West Asia could also fall within the scope of Iran's response in the event of renewed aggression.

Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi, head of the advisory group to the IRGC commander, also addressed the confrontation.

Fadavi said American naval forces and military equipment have been pushed more than 1,000 kilometers away from Iran's borders during recent confrontations, stating that Washington's military presence has failed to intimidate the Iranian nation.

He said the United States has employed its harshest economic sanctions against Iran but has failed to force the country to abandon its objectives or surrender to pressure.

The IRGC adviser also highlighted the strategic importance of the Persian Gulf and Iran's naval capabilities, asserting that American forces have faced immediate responses whenever they attempted to approach Iranian territory.