US strikes Iran as Hormuz blockade returns and tankers come under attack

The United States struck Iranian military sites after announcing the return of a Hormuz blockade. Iran retaliated by hitting regional allies and tankers, jeopardising the ceasefire and global shipping.

In Short

• Iran targeted Bahrain, Jordan and commercial vessels after Washington's latest operation
• Two UAE-linked tankers caught fire, killing one mariner and injuring eight
• Air safety agencies warned carriers against Gulf routes amid missile threats

The United States launched strikes on Iran early Tuesday, hours after President Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a blockade of Iranian ports and charge ships for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded with attacks on US allies in the Middle East and on tankers that had travelled through the strait, dealing a fresh blow to an interim deal meant to pause the fighting and reopen a key global shipping route.

The renewed exchange has again put the focus on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of all traded crude oil and natural gas passed in peacetime. The fighting has threatened the global economy, triggered warnings for commercial airlines and raised the risk of a wider war unless diplomacy revives quickly.

The US military's Central Command said it struck several areas in Iran, targeting "coastal defense systems, missile and drone sites and maritime capabilities". Iran acknowledged the strikes but did not immediately give casualty or damage details. The US military said, "These strikes will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack innocent civilians and commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz."

Iran then launched attacks targeting Bahrain, Jordan and three tankers that had travelled through the strait. Two of the ships, linked to the United Arab Emirates, were set ablaze for a time. The Emirati Defence Ministry said the attack on the tankers Mombasa and Al Bahiyah killed one mariner and injured eight others, and the Emirates threatened retaliation. Dutch shipping firm Stolt Tankers said one of its vessels, the Stolt Magnesium, came under attack off Oman, causing a fire in the engine room, but all mariners were safe. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah had "ignored repeated warnings". Iran has targeted ships using a route through the strait that passes near Oman and outside its territorial waters.

Hours after the US said it had ended its campaign of strikes, the Iranian city of Bushehr on the Persian Gulf was hit in at least four locations, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. The report again raised the possibility that Gulf Arab states were attacking Iran in retaliation. Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy's 5th Fleet, sounded missile alert sirens three times early Tuesday. Jordan's military said it intercepted four Iranian missiles. Jordan hosts US forces and has faced attacks from Tehran in recent days. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency warned airlines against operating in the airspace of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, as well as over the Gulf of Oman. In a bulletin, it said "unpredictable military developments, combined with the possible use of missiles, drones, combat aircraft and air-defense systems, create a high risk to civil flights".

The latest fighting has put the interim peace deal in deeper trouble, with the 60-day period for negotiating a final accord now nearly half over. The deal was also meant to address Iran's disputed nuclear programme and other issues. Washington had lifted a blockade imposed in mid-April as part of the agreement, but Trump's latest announcement has cast fresh doubt on it. The US military said it would resume the blockade at midnight Wednesday in Dubai. On social media on Monday, Trump said, "We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE." He also said the US would charge a fee equal to 20 per cent of cargo value to cover "any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security".

The move marks a change from longstanding US policy on freedom of navigation and from recent US assurances that the strait would remain open without tolls, including remarks by Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a trip to the region. Under the interim deal, Iran agreed that passage through the strait would remain free of charge for 60 days, though the agreement did not say what would happen after that. Iran says it has the right to manage traffic through the strait and could charge fees, a position the US disputes. Any attempt by either side to impose such charges would challenge global norms on freedom of navigation and could deepen economic disruption. Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, rose to a one-month high of more than USD 87 on Tuesday, though that remained below the nearly USD 120 seen at the height of the war.

Regional mediators are still trying to bring Washington and Tehran back to the negotiating table, according to two regional officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the process. They said Pakistan-led mediation was working round the clock to revive the ceasefire. At the same time, Lebanese and Israeli delegations were expected to meet in Rome on Tuesday for continuing US-mediated talks. Shortly after the US and Israel launched the war on February 28, Hezbollah joined the conflict in support of Iran and began attacking Israel, prompting an Israeli ground invasion of Lebanon. Last month, Lebanon and Israel announced a "framework agreement" for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon in exchange for Hezbollah's disarmament, but implementation has stalled. With fighting around the strait intensifying again, the interim deal is under fresh strain, even as mediation efforts continue and the truce in Lebanon remains uncertain.

With PTI Inputs

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