DOHA: A vessel was struck on Sunday by “an unknown projectile” in the Strait of Hormuz, a British maritime security agency said, after Qatari media reported an earlier attack on a gas tanker.

Britain’s UKMTO maritime agency said “the master of a merchant vessel has relayed a Mayday call... stating that another vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile” in the strait.

Later on Sunday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said two oil tankers “exploded” after striking mines while traveling through ‌an “unauthorized route” ‌in the ‌Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media reported.

Earlier, Qatar’s state news agency said a Qatari gas tanker had been attacked on Friday with “unidentified objects” while transiting Gulf waters.

The attack struck a liquefied natural gas carrier, Al-Mayeda, which belongs to the Qatar Gas Transport Company, Qatar News Agency said.

Since the Middle East war began in February, Iran has been targeting vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and wider Gulf in an effort to assert control over shipping.

It says vessels must obtain its permission to transit the waterway.

In response, the US has been blockading Iranian ports.

None of the crew members onboard the vessel struck on Friday were injured and there was no environmental impact from the attack, the report said.

The ship was in a “safe condition” and operational, the Qatari company was cited as saying.

Qatar, a mediator in the war, has stepped up diplomatic efforts in recent days in an attempt to revive negotiations between the United States and Iran.

*AFP, Reuters