US Conducted Covert Four-Month Mission to Clear Mines From Strait of Hormuz: FT

WASHINGTON, Sep 7: The United States carried out a covert four-month operation to detect and clear naval mines from the Strait of Hormuz, deploying Navy SEAL divers, robotic boats and specialized underwater vehicles, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the operation.

The mission was conducted largely at night, with small teams of divers using inflatable boats while unmanned surface vessels and submersibles equipped with high-resolution sonar searched the seabed for explosives. Once mines were detected, divers attached charges to destroy them, while robotic submersibles could also be used for detonations. No US casualties were reported in connection with the operation.

The operation began after Iran said it had laid mines in international and Omani waters following the start of US-Israeli strikes in February. Shipping executives and security advisers told the FT they believed the southern section of the strait near Oman, where US forces have been directing vessels, had been cleared, although uncertainty remained over whether the entire waterway was free of mines.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on August 31 that a supertanker caught fire and stopped after striking two naval mines while attempting to use what Tehran described as an unauthorized route south of the Strait of Hormuz. However, maritime authorities have reported no confirmed mine strikes during the conflict. Analysts cited by the FT said satellite imagery had provided no clear evidence supporting Iran’s claims that mines had been laid, with the only confirmed mine sighting reportedly coming from a Pakistani survey vessel in May.

The United States has warned that it will attack vessels attempting to deploy additional mines in the waterway. Washington also said it struck Iranian rocket launchers on August 30 as they were preparing to fire mines into the strait.

The report said the potential for new mines, along with Iran’s missile and drone attacks on shipping, means mine-clearing efforts alone may not be enough to restore normal commercial traffic. Shipowners will ultimately have to assess whether the US-protected route near Oman is sufficiently safe before resuming operations through the strategic waterway.