Iran said it had attacked and disabled two large oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz after they allegedly failed to follow Iran’s route through the waterway. Iranian state media said the ships had been warned several times. The claim had not been independently confirmed, and the flags of the vessels were unclear.

Iran said the tankers were carrying about 4 million barrels of crude oil combined and that a fire had broken out after an explosion. The condition of the people on board was unknown. Iran and the United States have established separate sailing rules in the strait since the beginning of the year, according to the account.