Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced that its naval forces captured an unmanned United States submarine near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, the latest development in an escalating military confrontation between Tehran and Washington over control of the critical waterway connecting the Gulf and the Arabian Sea.
The IRGC said in a statement on Tuesday evening that its forces had "trapped one of the most modern, intelligent, unmanned submarines of the terrorist US army at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz." The statement described the operation as a "complex intelligence and operational mastermind operation at dawn today," without providing further details.
Iranian state media identified the vessel as a Dive-LD, an autonomous underwater vehicle manufactured by California-based defence company Anduril Industries. The submersible is approximately six metres (20 feet) long and is designed for long-duration missions including surveillance, seabed mapping, and mine detection.
"This smart submersible features the latest technology in the submersible field in the world, and was delivered to the US terrorist army fleet in 2025," the IRGC said.
The United States has not issued an official statement on the incident. However, an unnamed Pentagon spokesperson confirmed the loss of the vessel, saying it had been deployed to survey regional waters in support of ongoing operations. Washington maintains the submarine "had malfunctioned a day ago."
"The defective drone was an older model that neither collected sensitive data nor carried any classified sonar or radar equipment," the spokesperson said.
Anduril Industries confirmed the loss of one of its vehicles but sought to minimise the significance of the incident. "Dive-LD is an attritable autonomous system, meaning it is designed from the outset to operate in dangerous environments where loss of the vehicle is an expected possibility," a company spokesperson said on Wednesday.
According to Anduril, the Dive-LD is a reusable platform capable of carrying different sensor and mission packages. The company lists its maximum operating depth at 6,000 metres (19,700 feet) and its endurance at up to 10 days. The vehicle reportedly costs nearly $2.5 million, according to US media reports.
On its website, Anduril describes the Dive-LD as possessing "open software, mechanical, and electrical interfaces allowing for seamless integration and rapid configuration of multiple payloads and sensors at a time," with capabilities spanning mine warfare, surveillance, reconnaissance, and precision placement.
The capture of the submersible comes amid a sharp escalation of hostilities in the region. The US military said on Tuesday evening that it destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers in response to an Iranian ballistic missile attack on a US Navy warship. Iran, in turn, said it attacked two US vessels and eight oil tankers.
The broader conflict has its roots in a US and Israeli military campaign against Iran that began in late February, which included strikes that resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, subsequently succeeded him.
Tehran's retaliatory strikes on US bases and assets across the region, along with attacks on critical energy infrastructure, have disrupted global energy markets. At least 18 US soldiers have been reported killed during the conflict. Iranian casualties are reported to number nearly 8,000, though the draft text from which this article is drawn was incomplete at that figure.
