Key facts
- US forces disabled an Iran-linked oil tanker, the M/T Belma, near Kharg Island.
- The tanker ignored multiple warnings before being disabled by US aircraft firing missiles.
- The action was part of a reinstated US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
- Vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has significantly decreased.
- Oil prices rose sharply following the incident and renewed tensions.
- Iran launched attacks on at least three tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. forces attacked an oil tanker in the Gulf, identified as the M/T Belma, which they stated was heading towards Iran's largest oil export terminal near Kharg Island. U.S. Central Command (Centcom) reported that the vessel ignored multiple warnings before being disabled by U.S. aircraft firing Hellfire missiles into its smokestack as it attempted to violate a reinstated naval blockade of Iranian ports. President Donald Trump reintroduced the blockade on Tuesday. The action has led to a significant reduction in vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, with very few ships passing through the waterway on the first full day of the blockade. Oil markets have recorded their sharpest price rise in nearly two months following the incident and renewed tensions. The fragile ceasefire appeared to disintegrate after Iran launched attacks on at least three tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, including a vessel carrying about 8 million cubic feet of liquefied natural gas. At least four oil and gas tankers have turned back from trying to transit the strait, which has hampered efforts to normalize flows of oil and gas through the vital trade route. Global oil prices had previously fallen from highs of more than $110 a barrel in late May amid hopes that US-Iran talks would bring an end to the war that had disrupted flows of about 20 million barrels of oil a day from Gulf producers. In Europe, the collapse of the ceasefire reignited a 5% increase in gas market prices. The benchmark Dutch contract increased by more than €2.40 to €49 per megawatt hour, while the UK equivalent rose by 6p to 116.75p per therm. The return of rising energy prices risks increasing household costs, which have faced the steepest rise in summer energy bills in four years. If sustained, the higher market costs could mean rising gas and electricity prices in the winter, as well as higher prices at the pump. Market analysts have stopped short of forecasting a return to oil prices of more than $100 a barrel, noting the global market's resilience.