Tanker Louise 1 Hit by Explosive Attack in Strait of Hormuz
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A tanker identified as Louise 1 suffered an attack involving explosives attached to its hull by a small boat in the Strait of Hormuz. The incident caused an engine room fire that temporarily disabled the vessel, although the fire was extinguished and the ship continued its voyage to its next port of call.
Vessel and attack details
According to maritime security firm Vanguard Tech, the vessel attacked is the Louise 1, a Panamanian-flagged tanker of 159,092 deadweight tonnes, owned by Aquarius Maritime Ventures, based in Panama. The attack occurred 25 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman, when a small boat approached on the port side and placed two explosive devices on the waterline. UKMTO stated that the incident was reported at 2212 UTC on 29 October, while other sources placed it on Thursday night. No injuries among the crew or pollution were reported.
Change in tactics
The attack marks a shift in the modus operandi of the attacks attributed to Iran against commercial shipping in the area, which until now had mainly involved the use of drones, missiles and small-arms fire from smaller craft. In this case, the explosives were manually placed on the vessel's hull, a method described as new within the conflict that has affected navigation in the region for the past eight months.
Other incidents the same day
Hours before the attack on the Louise 1, UKMTO reported that another vessel was struck by an unidentified projectile while completing an outbound transit through the Strait of Hormuz, at 1600 UTC on 29 October, in the southern area near Oman. In addition, an earlier incident previously reported as a tanker on fire and sinking was clarified by regional authorities: it was in fact a commercial dhow that caught fire, listed and sank, with its crew evacuated safely.
Attack figures in the region
Figures on the scale of the attacks vary depending on the source. According to IMO data cited by two outlets, 34 confirmed attacks against vessels were recorded between 28 September and 27 October, mainly in the Strait of Hormuz, although Iran also targeted vessels in wider areas of the region in recent weeks. Another source noted that the attack on the Louise 1 was the 35th confirmed attack on a vessel within a one-month period. An additional report indicated that, since the start of hostilities in late February, 121 confirmed attacks on merchant vessels have been recorded in the region, resulting in 24 seafarer deaths.
