Video: Iran claims strike on radar communications site on Oman’s Didamar Island in Strait of Hormuz
Abdullateef Fowewe
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed it targeted and destroyed radar and communications infrastructure on Oman’s Didamar Island in the southern Strait of Hormuz.
Video: Iran claims strike on radar communications site on Oman’s Didamar Island in Strait of Hormuz
Footage circulating online shows a large plume of smoke rising from the small rocky island, which hosts navigational aids and military-staffed equipment near the southern shipping corridor.
An IRGC official stated the systems were used to “facilitate the passage of ships” through the strait, including what Iranian sources described as a Pentagon-backed or U.S.-assisted route, and claimed no vessels were able to transit the southern route overnight.
Iranian state media reported the destruction of navigational aid systems on the island.
The reports, which emerged on November 9, 2026, remain largely based on Iranian claims and open-source video.
Didamar Island forms part of infrastructure supporting maritime traffic management in the area, including elements linked to the International Maritime Organization’s traffic separation scheme.
The incident occurs amid a prolonged U.S.-Iran conflict that began earlier in 2026 and has centered heavily on the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil trade normally passes.
The United States has maintained a naval blockade of Iran and conducted repeated strikes on Iranian radar systems, missile launchers, and related infrastructure, including multiple attacks on Qeshm Island near the strait in recent days and weeks.
Iran has restricted or sought to control shipping through the waterway, citing the blockade and demanding concessions such as the release of frozen assets and an end to sanctions.
Both sides have prioritised targeting radar and early-warning systems throughout the conflict.
Oman has sought to play a mediating role, which could make any confirmed strike on its territory diplomatically sensitive.
Oil markets and shipping insurance rates have already been affected by the restricted traffic, with some vessels rerouted or relying on alternative arrangements.
