Fuel tanker explosion in western Iran kills 11, state media reports

At least 11 people died and seven others were injured Saturday when a fuel tanker exploded during a traffic collision in western Iran, state broadcaster IRIB reported.

The crash occurred on an intercity route linking Sanandaj County in Kurdestan province with Hamedan County in Hamedan province. Babak Hodaei, head of emergency medical services at Kurdestan University of Medical Sciences, said the blast set several nearby cars on fire.

Emergency responders took the injured to a medical facility in Sanandaj, Xinhua reported, while rescue work at the scene continued.

The explosion followed an earlier July incident in which an oil tanker detonated in the Strait of Hormuz after striking a naval mine, local media reported. Accounts carried by the semi-official Mehr News Agency said that vessel had drifted from designated channels into an area restricted for safe maritime transit despite prior warnings.

The Strait of Hormuz carries oil and liquefied natural gas from major Gulf producers to markets around the world. Separately, US forces struck three Iranian crude oil tankers after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it launched ballistic missiles at two US Navy warships. US Central Command said an aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer evaded multiple incoming attacks without any American personnel being injured.

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US Central Command forces struck three Iranian crude oil carriers, Sept. 5, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched ballistic missiles towards two US Navy warships patrolling regional waters