Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced Tuesday that it successfully captured an unmanned American submarine in the Strait of Hormuz, pledging to provide further information about the incident in the coming hours.
According to the Iranian statement, the underwater vessel was seized following what they described as a lengthy and complex intelligence operation. The capture occurred Tuesday morning at the entrance to the strategic waterway, which connects the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and serves as a critical passage for global oil shipments.
Iranian officials characterized the seized vessel as "one of the most advanced smart unmanned submarines" supplied to the U.S. Navy in 2025. The announcement comes amid heightened tensions in the region, with recent reports indicating that American forces have conducted a four-month operation to neutralize mines in the Strait of Hormuz using commando units, reportedly without Iranian knowledge. The Iranian claim appears to be a response to those activities.
The claim has not been independently verified, and Washington has neither confirmed nor denied losing an unmanned platform in the area.
There is reason for caution beyond the absence of evidence. Recent reporting from the region has described IRGC engagements with unmanned surface vessels rather than submersibles, and the difference is not a technicality. A surface drone runs on top of the water and is relatively easy to spot and intercept. Seizing an autonomous vehicle operating beneath the surface is a considerably harder problem. Whether Iran took an underwater system or is recharacterizing a surface vessel is not currently possible to establish.
The Guard paired the announcement with a warning that the strait remains under Iranian control and that unauthorized military activity there could draw a forceful response. Iran has restricted traffic through the waterway during the war. Under international law the strait is a transit passage through which foreign vessels may pass without permission, a position the United States and most of the international community maintain against Iran's sovereignty claim.
The strait is 21 miles wide at its narrowest point, and roughly a fifth of the world's traded oil moves through it.
