By Issy Ronald, CNN
(CNN) — Iran might be outgunned and outspent by the US and Israel but it has one major advantage – its control over the Strait of Hormuz.
By attacking ships navigating the narrow waterway, Iran has effectively shut the route, through which, one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes. And now, Tehran has also reportedly mined the strait, further deterring ships from attempting passage and marking a new escalation in the war.
Here’s what you need to know:
What is Iran doing?
In recent days, Iran has begun laying a few dozen mines in the strait, according to two people familiar with US intelligence on the matter. The mining is not extensive, but Iran still maintains upward of 80% to 90% of its small boats and minelayers, one source told CNN, contradicting US President Donald Trump’s claim Tehran has “no navy.”
Such a move underlines Iran’s reliance on asymmetric warfare and the havoc these tactics could wreak even as the country is battered by US-Israeli airstrikes.
Iran has around 5,000 to 6,000 naval mines, a report from the US Congress estimated last year. That total consists of many different types of mines, the report says. Some are limpet mines, which are usually manually attached to a ship’s hull by a diver; some are moored mines, which float just below the surface and explode when they come into contact with a ship; and some are “bottom” mines, which rest on the sea floor before detonating when they detect a nearby vessel.
Mines are just one part of the threat posed by Iran in the strait.
Its Revolutionary Guards, a separate force to the country’s navy, is still capable of deploying a “gauntlet” of mines, explosive-laden suicide boats and shore-based missile batteries, causing one US source to describe the strait as “Death Valley.”
That was laid bare on Tuesday when the guards said they fired on the Thai-flagged bulk carrier “Mayuree Naree” as it tried to pass through, causing an explosion in the ship’s engine room. Three of the 23 crew members, who were believed to have been on duty in the engine room, remain unaccounted for, according to Thai authorities. Another Liberian-flagged vessel, named “Express Rome,” was also struck by Iranian projectiles the same morning, Iran’s armed forces added.
How has the US responded?
US Central Command said Tuesday it had destroyed multiple Iranian naval ships – including 16 minelayers – near the strait, though it did not mention destroying any mines, which may have already been laid.
That followed President Donald Trump saying on Truth Social, “if Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing son, we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY!”
If Iran didn’t remove any mines it might have laid, the country would face consequences “at a level never before seen,” Trump added. However, if it removed “what may have been placed, it will be a giant step in the right direction!”
American minesweeping capabilities in the Persian Gulf are not as strong as they once were. The US Navy decommissioned the last of its four dedicated minesweeper in the region last September, leaving it dependent on less specialized ships.
At the time, US Naval Forces Central Command said four littoral combat ships