US military says it is degrading Tehran’s ability to threaten ships in strait of Hormuz; Houthis say tankers violated their blockade; US signs nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia
More on Yemen’s Houthis claiming strikes on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea:
The master of one tanker reported being struck by an unknown projectile about 70 nautical miles south-west of Al Shuqaiq, causing a fire that the crew was fighting, the British naval security monitor UKMTO said.
Continue reading...Revolutionary Guard says it targeted US aircraft in Jordan and stopped two tankers in strait while American military says it is ‘holding Iran accountable’
The price of oil jumped in early Asian trade on Monday after the US carried out its latest wave of strikes on Iran and a vessel caught fire in the strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude for September delivery rose 2.72% to $90.50 a barrel by around 0100 GMT, after briefly crossing $91 – its highest price since June.
CENTCOM assets targeted Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and communications networks to further diminish Iran’s ability to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. military is holding Iran accountable at the Commander in Chief’s direction.
Continue reading...Diplomats say de-escalation talks continue as Trump vows retaliation over US soldier deaths
The US military said it has launched its 10th consecutive round of strikes on Iran to force the reopening of the strait of Hormuz.
Earlier on Monday, Iran’s president said the country is in a “full-scale war” after the US expanded its aerial campaign and Tehran struck Washington’s Gulf allies, even as diplomats said talks to de-escalate were continuing.
Continue reading...Sirens sound in Bahrain and Kuwait accuses Tehran of targeting civilian sites and infrastructure as Iran strikes US allies
The US retaliated against Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) after two American troops were killed and one was missing in Jordan when Tehran launched a wave of attacks against US allies in the Middle East.
Iran’s attacks came as the renewal of US strikes on Iran entered a second week and fighting escalated over the strait of Hormuz.
Continue reading...Leaked US intelligence report concluded Iran retained 70% of missiles and launchers after 38-day spring campaign
Iran and the US have been trading blows for six consecutive nights and there are no shortage of signs that the renewed fighting will worsen further. Tehran and Washington remain far apart diplomatically, and though the US retains a significant military overmatch, Iran has more than enough capability to inflict damage.
Friday’s developments are a case in point. A wave of US attacks, with missiles launched from jets, drones and warships, targeted Iranian ports and the south of the country, collapsing a tower at Chabahar, on the Gulf of Oman, and highways and bridges into the strait of Hormuz port of Bandar Abbas, perhaps in an effort to cut it off.
Continue reading...Boarding of M/T Wen Yao in Gulf of Oman comes as expanded airstrike campaign hits five bridges in southern Iran
American forces boarded a ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday as part of the renewed blockade of Iran’s ports that began earlier this week, the US military said.
US Marines boarded the M/T Wen Yao “to ensure full compliance with the ongoing US naval blockade,” US Central Command (Centcom) said in a post on X.
Continue reading...Sixth day of fighting threatens to turn into all-out war and casts serious doubt on peace deal struck last month
The US has intensified its attacks on Iran, hitting targets near Tehran and striking a ship it accused of trying to break its blockade, while Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at US allies in the region.
Six consecutive days of back-and-forth attacks threaten to pull the region back into a total war and cast serious doubt about an interim deal reached last month meant to achieve a permanent peace.
Continue reading...Five months of U-turns and false boasts leave Donald Trump in worse position than when he started
Donald Trump has taken the war with Iran into a new, murkier phase as the two sides move further and further from the vague memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed on 17 June.
And as during the opening phase of the conflict, the US leader’s objectives and methods are clouded in confusion, daily U-turns and boasts that within hours are revealed to be false.
Continue reading...Tehran shuts strait of Hormuz and carries out retaliatory strikes as Trump threatens to attack site linked to Iran’s nuclear programme
Iran threatened to halt all energy exports from the Middle East after the US reimposed a blockade of its ports and ships, as the two countries traded strikes for a fifth day and Donald Trump threatened to attack a site linked to Iran’s nuclear programme while he weighed further expanding US strikes next week.
The US blockade came into force early on Wednesday, and was followed by a 90-minute wave of strikes against Iran’s coastal defence systems and missile sites, according to the US military. Iranian authorities said the previous day of US strikes had killed at least seven troops, and wounded more than 300 people – the highest casualty count of any recent round of violence between the two countries.
Continue reading...US hits targets in port cities of Bushehr and Bandar Abbas while Iran targets Bahrain and Jordan in retaliation
Donald Trump has backed down from a threat that ships would have to pay a 20% fee to the US for “security” in the strait of Hormuz, replacing it with what he described as investment and trade deals with Gulf Arab states as US and Iranian airstrikes resumed for a third day.
The US president said he had decided to scrap the toll “based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership”, and touted “massive” investments, just five hours before the toll was due to come into effect. He said the US would continue to blockade Iranian ports.
Continue reading...American president says ships will be charged for safe passage through strait in apparent policy reversal
The US has launched its third consecutive night of strikes on Iran hours after Donald Trump said Washington would reinstate a maritime blockade on the country and, in an apparent policy reversal, charge ships for safe passage.
“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,” the US military’s Central Command said.
Continue reading...This live blog has now closed – you can read our latest report from the Middle East here
Bahrain’s interior ministry instructed residents to take shelter after attacks on the island nation as Iran targets US interests in the Gulf.
The siren has been sounded... citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place,” the ministry posted on X.
Continue reading...American and Iranian forces exchange heavy missile and drone attacks over control of strait of Hormuz, increasing pressure on truce
The US military has launched a new wave of attacks against Iran amid the escalating standoff over the strait of Hormuz, with Tehran saying the latest strikes had “rendered futile” all the diplomatic efforts of the past few months.
The US military began launching more strikes against Iran at 9pm GMT on Sunday, US Central Command (Centcom) said on X, “to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz”.
Continue reading...Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the UAE reportedly came under attack as Tehran says it is closing Strait of Hormuz
There has been almost no visible traffic in the strait of Hormuz so far today, with only two oil products tankers seen approaching the narrow waterway, according to a Bloomberg report.
As a reminder, the US president, Donald Trump, has declared the ceasefire over while leaving the door open for talks, and mediators have been trying to salvage a diplomatic solution despite the attacks intensifying.
Continue reading...Ceasefire at the point of collapse after almost a week of tit-for-tat exchanges escalate tensions across Gulf region
Donald Trump has rejected Iranian claims to have closed off the strait of Hormuz as both sides battled for control over the waterway, leaving a ceasefire agreed last month at the point of collapse.
US forces said they had attacked 140 targets in Iran on Saturday night and Sunday morning after Tehran struck and disabled a container ship in the strait, whose transit it said had not been approved. In a statement, US Central Command (Centcom) said its targets had included missile and drone sites, naval facilities, ammunition depots, communication networks and surveillance locations.
Continue reading...Plans specify tolls must not be compulsory, as US officials urge Iran to make public statement that strait is open and that shipping can safely pass
Europe is studying proposals that may allow the charging of navigational fees in the strait of Hormuz so long as the tolls are not compulsory and have the support of the UN agency that regulates maritime transport.
Britain’s deputy prime minister, David Lammy, said the imposition of compulsory tolls would be disastrous. But some of his cabinet colleagues said they recognised that systems of payments for specific navigational services were permissible in many natural waterways, including the strait of Malacca and the Channel.
Continue reading...Iran responds by targeting US-allied Kuwait and Qatar and accusing US of striking near its sole nuclear power plant
The US has launched new airstrikes against Iran, hours after Donald Trump threatened to escalate the conflict unless Iran stopped attacking ships in the strait of Hormuz.
Iran, which was burying its former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday, responded by targeting US-allied Kuwait and Qatar and accused the US of striking near its sole nuclear power plant.
Continue reading...Residents in Bandar Abbas and Sirik regions describe communities in fear and ‘feeling abandoned’ after US strikes
Residents in southern Iran have described two nights of fear this week after explosions shook coastal communities as the US launched fresh strikes on targets including the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik.
US Central Command confirmed the attacks, saying they were carried out to “further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the strait of Hormuz”.
Continue reading...World is witnessing a turning point, says ministry spokesperson, as Iran seeks to assert independence amid rising tensions
Before a foreign ministry press briefing at the Grand Hotel Tehran, the assembled reporters were asked to stand for the national anthem that duly blared from fuzzy speakers.
At the podium, the ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, claimed the world was witnessing a turning point in the history of Shia Islam. A century from now, he claimed, the assassinated Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would be revered as a second Imam Hussain, the martyred grandson of the prophet Muhammad. Donald Trump, meanwhile, would be seen as a latterday Yazid, the tyrannical 7th century caliph.
Continue reading...Brent crude benchmark rose to more than $80 a barrel, its steepest increase since ceasefire began
Oil markets have recorded their sharpest price rise in nearly two months after a series of attacks on fossil fuel tankers near the strait of Hormuz led Donald Trump to declare that the ceasefire deal with Iran was over.
At the same time, UK short-dated bonds suffered their worst day since the end of March as the prospect grew of a Bank of England rate rise to cope with the renewed inflationary pressures.
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