There is no clear evidence that Iran has laid mines in the Strait of Hormuz, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a press conference, quoted by Reuters, BTA reports.
Hegseth's statement contradicts media reports from earlier this week that Iran has laid about a dozen sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz - a vital corridor through which one-fifth of the world's oil passes.
Asked if there could be mines in the strait, Hegseth replied: "We have heard talk about it, just as you have been reporting it recklessly and irresponsibly. But [...] we have no clear evidence of that".
Hegseth commented on the issue on the 14th day since the start of the US-Israeli war against Iran, at a time when the US and other countries are facing a rise in the prices of natural gas and oil, which is now trading for about $ 100 a barrel.
The US armed forces said earlier today that all six crew members of a US tanker plane that crashed in western Iraq were killed, the Associated Press reported.
The military said that the circumstances surrounding the incident are being investigated.
US Central Command said that the crash was not caused by friendly or enemy fire and that two aircraft were involved, one of which landed safely.
The KC-135 is the fourth publicly confirmed aircraft that Washington has lost in during the operations of the US armed forces against Iran.
Last week, three US fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defense forces.