LONDON, June 8 (Xinhua) -- Multiple commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf suffered internet outages on Monday, which lasted about half a day, seafarers near the Strait of Hormuz told Xinhua.

A mariner aboard a merchant vessel east of the strait, near the coast of the United Arab Emirates, said his ship remained connected to the internet via coastal network signals. However, several vessels deeper inside the Gulf, further from the coast, informed him via ship-to-ship radio that they had lost connectivity, with VSAT satellite systems and Starlink services unavailable.

Some seafarers speculated that the disruption could be linked to U.S. efforts to tighten maritime restrictions against Iran.

They said the communication blackout had prevented vessels from using email-based reporting channels required by Iran for transit coordination in the Strait of Hormuz.

Separately, ship-to-ship radio audio circulating among crews captured a warning attributed to Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, which said that unauthorized vessels entering or deviating from approved routes would be "struck and destroyed."