The Iranian military loaded naval mines onto vessels in the Persian Gulf last month, a move that intensified concerns in Washington that Tehran was gearing up to blockade the Strait of Hormuz following Israel’s strikes on sites across Iran, according to two U.S. officials.

The previously unreported preparations, which were detected by U.S. intelligence, occurred some time after Israel launched its initial missile attack against Iran on June 13, said the officials, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence matters, Reuters reported.

The loading of the mines – which have not been deployed in the strait – suggests that Tehran may have been serious about closing one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, a move that would have escalated an already-spiraling conflict and severely hobbled global commerce.

About one-fifth of global oil and gas shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz and a blockage would likely have spiked world energy prices.

Global benchmark oil prices have instead fallen more than 10% since the U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, driven in part by relief that the conflict did not trigger significant disruptions in the oil trade.

On June 22, shortly after the U.S. bombed three of Iran’s key nuclear sites in a bid to cripple Tehran’s nuclear program, Iran’s parliament reportedly backed a measure to block the strait.

That decision was not binding, and it was up to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council to make a final decision on the closure, Iran’s Press TV said at the time. Iran has over the years threatened to close the strait but has never followed through on that threat.

Reuters was not able to determine precisely when during the Israel-Iran air war Tehran loaded the mines, which – if deployed – would have effectively stopped ships from moving through the key thoroughfare.

It is also unclear if the mines have since been unloaded.

The sources did not disclose how the United States determined that the mines had been put on the Iranian vessels, but such intelligence is typically gathered through satellite imagery, clandestine human sources or a combination of both methods, read the report.

Asked for comment about Iran’s preparations, a White House official said: “Thanks to the President’s brilliant execution of Operation Midnight Hammer, successful campaign against the Houthis, and maximum pressure campaign, the Strait of Hormuz remains open, freedom of navigation has been restored, and Iran has been significantly weakened.”

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Iranian mission at the United Nations also did not respond to requests for comment.

The two officials said the U.S. government has not ruled out the possibility that loading the mines was a ruse. The Iranians could have prepared the mines to convince Washington that Tehran was serious about closing the strait, but without intending to do so, the officials said.

Iran’s military could have also simply been making necessary preparations in the event that Iran’s leaders gave the order, Reuters reported.

The Strait of Hormuz lies between Oman and Iran and links the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman to the south and the Arabian Sea beyond.

It is 21 miles (34 km) wide at its narrowest point, with the shipping lane just 2 miles wide in either direction.

OPEC members Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the strait, mainly to Asia. Qatar, among the world’s biggest liquefied natural gas exporters, sends almost all of its LNG through the strait.

Iran also exports most of its crude through the passage, which in theory limits Tehran’s appetite to shut the strait. But Tehran has nonetheless dedicated significant resources to making sure it can do so if it deems necessary.

As of 2019, Iran maintained more than 5,000 naval mines, which could be rapidly deployed with the help of small, high-speed boats, the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency estimated at the time, Reuters reported.

The U.S. Fifth Fleet, which is based in Bahrain, is charged with protecting commerce in the region. The U.S. Navy has typically kept four mine countermeasure vessels, or MCM vessels, in Bahrain, though those ships are being replaced by another type of vessel called a littoral combat ship, or LCS, which also has anti-mine capabilities.

All anti-mine ships had been temporarily removed from Bahrain in the days leading up to the U.S. strikes on Iran in anticipation of a potential retaliatory attack on Fifth Fleet headquarters.

Ultimately, Iran’s immediate retaliation was limited to a missile attack on a U.S. military base in nearby Qatar.

U.S. officials, however, have not ruled out further retaliatory measures by Iran.

Turkish authorities on Monday detained three cartoonists over a satirical drawing published by weekly magazine Leman that seemed to depict Prophets Mohammad (PBUH) and Moses shaking hands in the sky, while missiles flew below in a scene resembling war.

The cartoon, widely seen as a commentary on religious harmony in contrast to conflict on Earth, drew strong condemnation from government officials and religious conservatives, Reuters reported.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya shared a video on X showing police officers detaining cartoonist Dogan Pehlevan and dragging him up the stairs of a building with his hands cuffed behind his back.

“I once again curse those who try to sow discord by drawing caricatures of our Prophet Muhammad,” Yerlikaya wrote.

“The individual who drew this vile image, D.P., has been apprehended and taken into custody. These shameless people will be held accountable before the law.”

Yerlikaya later posted two other videos, showing two other men being laid on the ground and forcibly taken from their homes, as policemen dragged them into vans – one of them walking barefoot.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said an investigation had been launched under Article 216 of the Turkish Penal Code, which criminalises incitement to hatred and enmity, and that detention orders had been issued for six people in total.

In its statement on X, the Leman magazine apologised to readers who felt offended and said the cartoon had been misunderstood.

It said Pehlevan had sought to highlight “the suffering of a Muslim man killed in Israeli attacks”, and that there was no intent to insult Islam or its prophet.

“The name Muhammad is among the most widely used in the world by Muslims honoring the Prophet. The cartoon does not depict the Prophet and was not drawn to mock religious values,” the magazine said, calling some interpretations “deliberately malicious.”

Leman also urged judicial authorities to act against what it called a smear campaign, and asked security forces to protect freedom of expression, Reuters reported.

Some 935 people were killed in Iran during the 12-day air war with Israel, based on the latest forensic data, a spokesperson for the Iranian judiciary said on Monday, according to state media.

Among the dead were 38 children and 132 women, the spokesperson, Asghar Jahangir, said.

The death toll was a sharp increase from a previous Iranian health ministry tally of 610 killed in Iran before a ceasefire went into effect on Tuesday last week.

Jahangir also revised the number of people killed in an Israeli strike on Tehran’s Evin Prison to 79, up from 71.

Israel launched the air war on June 13, attacking Iranian nuclear facilities and killing top military commanders as well as civilians in the worst blow to the Islamic Republic since the 1980s war with Iraq, Reuters reported.

Iran retaliated with barrages of missiles on Israeli military sites, infrastructure and cities. The United States entered the war on June 22 with strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Israel’s “act of aggression had led to many war crimes”. He said Iran would transfer evidence to international organisations which he said should hold Israel to account.

“The Zionist regime’s (Israel) action was done without any reason or justification, therefore we do not believe in separating military and civilian (victims),” Baghaei told reporters at a regular press briefing.

He said any “martyr or destroyed building is an example of war crimes.”