Iran's Revolutionary Guards say four tankers caught fire after hitting mines near Hormuz, but BBC Verify finds no evidence they were destroyed

Iran's Revolutionary Guards say four oil tankers caught fire after hitting mines near the Strait of Hormuz, a day after the US carried out limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island. The claim has not been substantiated. This report draws on CNN, ABC News, the BBC, NBC News and Reuters (in copy published by Dawn). ## Update: BBC Verify finds no evidence BBC Verify, which has been investigating the claims, says it has not found any evidence that four tankers were destroyed. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Wednesday 4 November that the tankers hit naval mines while using a route it called prohibited, south of the strait, that two were still burning and that two other vessels had been seized, Reuters and the BBC report, the BBC citing the semi-official Tasnim news agency. The ships have not been identified. In a separate incident, the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre said a tanker was struck by two unknown projectiles about 14 nautical miles north-east of Limah, on Oman's Musandam peninsula, on Tuesday evening, with no casualties reported, the BBC reports. ## The Qeshm strikes US officials told CNN, ABC News and NBC News that the strikes on Qeshm on Monday 2 November US time were defensive, a response to Iranian fire at a US aircraft, and not a return to major combat operations. "This was a defensive measure for Iranians using surface to air missiles against US assets," one official told CNN. Iranian state news agency IRNA reported explosions on the island, the BBC reports.