What happened

The UAE said an ADNOC-affiliated tanker was targeted by an Iranian missile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. MSCIO Alert 89/26 independently recorded a vessel struck by an unknown projectile about 18 nautical miles east of Khasab at the same date and location; the impact caused a fire that was extinguished, and the vessel and crew were reported safe with no environmental damage. The official reports did not explicitly name the MSCIO vessel as the ADNOC tanker, so that match is retained as probable rather than certain. Regional governments (Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the GCC) condemned the strike. ADNOC said this was one of a rising number of attacks on its vessels since the US–Iran war closed the strait to normal traffic in February 2026. A separate, earlier July 2026 strike on the tankers Mombasa and Al Bahiyah did cause one fatality — that is a distinct, already-documented incident, not this one.

When cited sources give different casualty, damage or spill figures for this event, they’re reported side by side above rather than merged into one number. See how confidence levels work.