US reimposes Iran naval blockade after Strait of Hormuz ship attacks

The United States restored its naval blockade on Iran and widened air strikes after attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. The escalation has weakened the interim truce, pushed up regional tensions and raised risks to global energy supplies.

In Short

• Overnight American strikes killed seven Iranian troops and wounded more than 260
• Tehran attacked shipping routes near Oman, deepening the collapse of truce
• Iran warned Middle East oil and gas exports could be halted

The United States reimposed a naval blockade on Iran on Wednesday and stepped up its air strike campaign after Tehran attacked ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian officials said one American strike hit an army barracks, killing at least seven troops, while more than 260 people were wounded across the country in overnight attacks.

The latest exchanges have further damaged the interim deal that had paused the fighting and opened a 60-day negotiation window on issues including Iran's nuclear programme. With clashes around the Strait of Hormuz intensifying again, the region faces the risk of sliding back into a wider war even as mediators continue efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back to talks.

The US had first imposed the blockade in April and lifted it last month after signing the interim deal. But the talks have stalled as fighting over the strait has grown. When the US and Israel launched the war on Iran on February 28, Tehran effectively closed the waterway to shipping, pushing up the prices of oil, fertiliser and other goods. Those rising prices have also created political pressure for US President Donald Trump and his Republican Party ahead of the November elections, while Washington has struggled to reopen the route.

Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened on Wednesday to stop all energy exports from the Middle East over the renewed blockade. "The export of oil and gas from the region will be either for everyone or for no one," it said.

The US military said it carried out a fresh wave of strikes overnight and resumed attacks in daylight, signalling a faster pace of operations. Within 17 hours of reimposing the blockade on Iranian ports, Central Command said US forces had "redirected" two commercial vessels trying to break it, adding: "The US military remains vigilant and prepared to ensure full compliance." Among the targets was Greater Tunb Island, a strategic point in the Strait of Hormuz, where Central Command said Iranian defence and missile sites were hit. Iran took control of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb from what would become the United Arab Emirates in 1971, and the UAE has sought to reclaim them.

Iranian state television said another American strike targeted a barracks of the 388th Mechanised Infantry Brigade in Sistan and Baluchestan province, with at least 13 missiles fired. It said the seven dead included conscripts and career soldiers, and that a number of troops were wounded. Government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said more than 30 people had been killed in recent days, without giving details. Health Ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour said more than 260 people were wounded in overnight strikes alone, though he did not say how many were killed. The army said it would make "a decisive response to this aggressive action by the American enemy", according to state TV.

Missile alerts sounded in Bahrain and Kuwait early on Wednesday as they faced incoming Iranian fire, something that has happened daily in recent days. Jordan said it shot down three incoming Iranian missiles. Iran claimed attacks on all three countries, which host US forces. US Navy Admiral Brad Cooper, who heads Central Command, said Iran had launched dozens of missiles and drones at neighbouring Gulf Arab countries. Trump told Fox News Channel on Tuesday night that more US strikes would come over the next two days and that bridges and power plants could be targeted by next week unless negotiations resumed. "You'd better make a deal, or you're not going to have anything left," Trump said. Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, criticised the attacks, writing to the UN chief through the state-run IRNA news agency: "The US is the aggressor, not the victim."

The fighting remains centred on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas trade passes in peacetime. During the interim deal, some ships had started using a route near Oman overseen by the US military and outside Tehran's control. In recent days, Iran attacked ships using that route, leading to further exchanges. The US has threatened to reopen the strait by force, though experts say that would require a much larger armada, if not tens of thousands of ground troops, and the blockade is now another means of pressuring Iran. Brent crude traded above USD 85 a barrel on Wednesday, more than 15 per cent higher than before the war, though still below the nearly USD 120 seen at the height of the conflict. Analysts at the International Monetary Fund said a surplus of oil had earlier kept prices low, but warned: "As tensions flare again in the Strait of Hormuz, that room is now smaller and shrinking further as spare capacity has been deployed, demand has compressed, and inventories have been drawn down. Unless inventories are replenished, the world will start from a weaker position when the next shock comes." Regional mediators, meanwhile, are still trying to get the United States and Iran back to the negotiating table.

With PTI Inputs

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