Stringer | Reuters
Three unknown projectiles hit a tanker while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, raising fears that the Middle East conflict could flare up again.
Britain’s Maritime and Trade Authority said in a post on Tuesday, Asian time, that the tanker was sailing in the southern shipping lane near the coast of Oman. No casualties were reported.
Iran on Monday launched attacks on two US military bases in Jordan in retaliation for the US attack on Larak Island. The US military reportedly targeted two Iranian-made rocket artillery on Larak Island, killing three people, on Sunday, and Tehran said it intended to fire a mine-laden rocket into the Strait of Hormuz.
This small island in the Strait of Hormuz is a key military and shipping control point for the Iranian military, helping it maintain a tight grip on shipping traffic through one of the world’s most important maritime routes.
Neither side appears to be seeking a return to all-out war, but they have signaled they are prepared to respond to further attacks. “We’re going to hit them hard,” President Donald Trump told Fox News on Monday, adding that “there will be some kind of response” to Iranian attacks on U.S. military bases in the region.
Analysts primarily view the U.S. attack on Larak Island as an attempt to break the deadlock rather than a change in strategy. “By attacking Iran’s launch pads rather than its broader military infrastructure, the United States appears to be punishing specific actions rather than expanding its war objectives, at least for now,” said Ali Baez, deputy director of planning at the International Crisis Group.
“We are tightening the blockade,” said Jason Brodsky, policy director for the Iran Anti-Nuclear Alliance, adding that the Trump administration’s goal is to further reduce Iran’s ability to mine in the Strait of Hormuz, with a focus on economic coercion as the midterm elections approach.
The US government is increasing pressure to squeeze Iran’s already bankrupt economy with “secondary sanctions” that punish countries and companies that buy Iranian oil. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday on the sidelines of a meeting of 20 finance ministers that Iran is “hitting hard and fast” as new sanctions hurt its economy.
President Trump reportedly said in the Oval Office on Monday that Iran’s financial system, military, and governance structure have deteriorated significantly. 「何が起こるか見るために我々が彼らを叩かないという意味ではない」と大統領は語った。
The war, now in its seventh month, has disrupted global energy supplies and shocked global financial markets.国際石油ベンチマークであるブレント原油は、敵対行為が再燃する中、1バレル当たり90ドルを超えて急騰し、火曜日の最終取引価格は91.08ドルとなった。 U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose less than 1% to $86.65 a barrel.
Brodsky said Trump has shown an “unpredictability” that worries Iranians, and that as economic pressure mounts, Tehran could become more aggressive militarily, “so this is basically a game of patience.”
