London, July 12: Tensions in the Middle East have escalated after the United States carried out another wave of airstrikes on Iran in response to Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and its attack on a commercial cargo ship.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced the closure of the vital shipping lane, accusing the Cyprus flagged vessel of disabling its tracking equipment and deviating from an authorized route. Iranian forces later fired on the ship, which they said had ignored repeated warnings.
The US military responded with what it described as its third set of strikes against Iranian targets this week. American officials said the attacked vessel suffered severe engine room damage, leaving it unable to continue its journey, while one civilian crew member remains missing. Washington said the latest military action was intended to hold Iran accountable for threatening international shipping.
Iran insisted its forces acted lawfully and warned that any attempt to challenge the closure of the Strait of Hormuz would draw a forceful response. Iranian officials also threatened to target US military installations across the region if hostilities intensify.
The latest confrontation comes after three commercial oil tankers were attacked earlier this week while using a shipping corridor recommended by the United States through Omani waters. Tehran has long argued that vessels should instead pass through routes within Iranian territorial waters. Those earlier exchanges left at least 17 people dead and more than 100 injured in Iran, while Iranian forces also launched attacks on US allies in the Gulf.
The fresh fighting has further weakened hopes of preserving a recently negotiated ceasefire. US President Donald Trump said Iran’s latest actions had effectively ended the truce, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Washington of breaking the agreement first. Despite the renewed military confrontation, both countries have indicated they remain open to indirect negotiations through regional mediators. The United States has demanded that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz and publicly guarantee safe passage for international commercial shipping.
The crisis has unfolded just days after Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, pledged retaliation in his first public address since taking over the country’s highest office following the death of his father, Ali Khamenei, in a February airstrike during the US Israel conflict. He vowed that Iran would continue seeking revenge for those killed in the war, saying the campaign would continue regardless of changes in the country’s leadership. (Source: BBC)
People’s News Monitoring Service
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