US is carrying out more attacks on Iran, with Iranian media reporting explosions in Kish Island, Jam Island, Qeshm Island, Bushehr and Bandar Abbas.
US strikes Iranian ship with drone boats in first-of-its-kind attack
Oil prices have climb 2 percent to touch a four-week high amid the continued tit-for-tat attacks by the US and Iran.
Brent crude futures gained $1.68, or 2 percent, to reach $84.98 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude pushed up $1.65, or 2.1 percent, to trade at $79.79 a barrel as of 00:51 GMT.
The increase follows a dramatic session on Monday, where Brent crude soared 9.6 percent, marking its sharpest single day climb since May 2020.
We have more from the IRGC.
In a statement carried by the IRIB state broadcaster, the IRGC said the “rogue” tankers had been “deceived by the US” into taking the southern route in Omani waters “by turning off their navigation systems”.
It said the tankers ignored repeated warnings and “were hit and disabled”.
The Tasnim news agency says the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has hit two “offending” super oil tankers.
It cited a statement by the IRGC.
The report comes hours after the UAE said Iran targeted two of its oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz in Omani waters, killing at least one Indian crew member.
US Central Command has published a video it says shows three Corsair unmanned surface vessels striking an Iranian ship maintenance facility and submarine, marking the US military’s first combat use of sea drones.
The strike comes despite Trump’s claim Iran’s navy has been “destroyed”.
Watch below:
Reporting from Wahington, DC, US
Should Trump’s threat to impose tolls be carried out, a fully laden tanker paying that 20 percent fee would be paying some $30m when it passes through the strait.
However, it is believed that Iran has been charging those ships that wanted to pay in the region of $2m. So this would be a massive increase in energy costs within the United States as well as, of course, globally.
And one must remember as well that Trump’s own secretary of state said only recently that to charge tolls on public waterways to vessels passing through was against international law.
However, Trump insists that this fee, or this toll, is justified because he says many rich nations use this route through the Strait of Hormuz, and the US should be compensated for its expense – as he put it – in protecting those vessels.
The route connected to this plan is the Omani route. And we haven’t heard from the Omanis about what they feel about the US president charging tolls on vessels passing in the vicinity of that country.
As we’ve been reporting, Trump has said that the US would be striking Iran “very heavy tonight”.
This is where Iranian media has reported explosions so far:
US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has criticised the renewed attacks on Iran, saying Trump “must comply” with votes in the House and Senate “to remove our forces from harm’s way and end this war now”.
He was referring to a War Powers Resolution passed by both houses of Congress in June, directing the president to withdraw US forces from hostilities with Iran.
Senator Adam Schiff, also a Democrat, said that recent events “prove why Congress must reassert its war powers authority”.
“We were promised the war would be over for months. And now in a matter of days we’ve gone from a bad US-Iran deal to more strikes, another blockade, and added turmoil that will only drive prices higher,” Schiff said on X.
Meanwhile, US Representative Joe Morelle said on X that Trump’s renewed strikes on Iran represent “another escalation” in his “unauthorized war”.
Nabeel Alhamer, a media adviser to Bahrain’s king, says the kingdom’s air defence systems have intercepted and destroyed Iranian aerial attacks in the country’s skies in recent hours.
He made the announcement in a post on X.
Reporting from Tehran, Iran
It’s another night of continued air strikes by the Americans, targeting the southern coast of Iran, including several cities and islands. We have reports of explosions on Abu Musa and Qeshm Islands tonight – very similar to past nights – as well as on Kish Island, which is something new.
We’re also getting reports of explosions in Bandar Abbas, which is an important commercial hub on Iran’s southern coast.
Explosions have also been reported in the southwest and southeast of the country. We’ve got reports of explosions in Konarak and Chabahar, similar to past nights, and there are also reports from Bushehr and Khuzestan provinces, which are critically important, given that they host key energy infrastructure.
Attacks have been reported in Omidiyeh, Jam, and Kangan.
In response, the Iranian side, all in all, is talking about the continuation of the retaliatory strikes. The latest comes from the country’s army, which first reported attacks on a US vessel, and later on a US military base and assets in Kuwait, saying communication centres, fuel depots, and Patriot systems were targeted.
They also said an MQ-1 drone was shot down over the Strait of Hormuz. And they also are promising further retaliatory strikes, and we’re receiving reports of potential attacks on other US military bases across the region.
Reporting from Wahington DC
CENTCOM issued a statement saying that strikes were under way for the third consecutive night.
They said the targets were all associated with Iran’s attempts to control the Strait of Hormuz, similar to targets hit in recent days, including coastal guard stations, air raid shelters, and other elements of the Iranian military apparatus involved in targeting shipping in the strait or attempting to block vessels from passing through it.
That has been typical of the military’s activity in recent days.
President Trump confirmed that these strikes were under way and added that he was considering striking another target inside Iran itself – a nuclear facility. Carrying out that threat would mark the first time since the ceasefire that the conflict moved back inland into Iran.
Iran’s Mehr news agency reports that the blast was heard in the southern city of Bushehr at 3:10am local time (23:40 GMT on Monday).
It said there has been no comment from official sources yet.
Iran’s Mehr news agency reports that US projectiles have hit the city of Omidiyeh in Iran’s southwestern Khuzestan province.
Citing a local official, the agency said at least four people were wounded in the attack.
Iran’s military has warned it will not allow the US to “interfere” in the management of the Strait of Hormuz, after Trump said Washington would reinstate a naval blockade on Iranian ports and become the “guardian” of the strategic waterway.
Watch below:
Hello, and welcome to our live coverage of the United States and Israel’s war on Iran, as well as Israel’s attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.
Stay with us for the latest news and analysis from across the Middle East and beyond.
You can find our updates from Monday, July 13, here.
Washington and Tehran both claim to be in control of the strategic waterway as fighting escalates.
Iran’s military has warned it will not allow the United States to ‘interfere’ in the management of the Strait of Hormuz.
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Iran rejects any US control over strait as both sides trade attacks in major threat to negotiations to end their war.
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