Mines Hit Tankers in Strait of Hormuz as UN Warns 45 Million at Risk of Hunger

Iran's navy and Revolutionary Guard Corps said three oil tankers caught fire after striking naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the latest disruption to the world's most important oil chokepoint as the US-Iran war grinds on.

The Guards' navy said two tankers that had switched off their radar and positioning systems and were "secretly attempting to transit" along an unauthorized route "exploded and caught fire after striking a naval mine," according to statements carried by Iranian state broadcaster and reported by Middle East Eye. A separate statement from Iran's conventional navy said a third tanker navigating east of the strait with its identification systems off also hit a mine and was forced to stop. Iran said one of the vessels was a supertanker.

Anadolu Agency reported that the Guards said two tankers were hit south of the strait. The statements did not give the names or nationalities of the vessels. The Guards earlier released footage of a large smoke plume from a vessel it said was carrying liquefied gas and had struck a mine, according to Middle East Eye.

Humanitarian toll mounts

A United Nations official said the US-Iran war has put 45 million people worldwide at risk of hunger, citing more expensive fertilizer and restricted shipping through the strait, and the UN has called for an urgent resolution to the crisis there, according to a WorldWatch digest of November 15 reports.

US Central Command said it shot down two Iranian drones with no casualties or damage. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said further US military action against Iran was not needed because its economy has been weakened.

Trump weighs holding back

President Donald Trump has told senior advisers in recent days that he may hold off on attacking Iran if the United States faces no new provocations from Tehran or the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, Reuters reported, citing three people familiar with the matter. Trump has alternated between threatening to escalate the war and winding it down, and officials said he does not appear to have settled on a course.

Leaders to meet in Shenzhen

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia's Tass news agency that a trilateral meeting between Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping will be held November 19 in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, on the sidelines of the APEC summit. A US official said Iran would be on the agenda, and the White House said the session is to focus on nuclear disarmament.

Elsewhere, the US air traffic control system remained stable after a nationwide outage, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said, though airlines were expected to cancel between 4,000 and 5,000 of roughly 41,000 scheduled flights.