The US-Iran conflict has seen sharp escalation since yesterday, with both sides reporting attacks on military infrastructure and commercial shipping vessels. The recent attacks are perhaps the biggest on shipping vessels since the beginning of the conflict.
US CENTCOM had said it destroyed five Iranian oil tankers on Tuesday, after Iranian forces attempted to strike a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles. The US identified the 5 Iranian vessels as Kaviz, Charminar, Horizon 1, Riesco and Derya. The US says the warship successfully evaded the Iranian attacks and that no American personnel were injured. Iran has claimed larger attacks by its forces in retaliation. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said they attacked two US naval vessels and eight oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran also fired multiple missiles towards US Military Bases in Jordan.
While the US CENTCOM has denied the claims of US Navy warships being hit, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency, or UKMTO has confirmed that several merchant vessels in the Northern Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman were hit by disabling fire during overnight military activity. In a separate incident, another vessel near Port Rashid in the UAE was seen listing (listing refers to a ship tilting on one side due to weight balance) after what UKMTO described as a possible attack by an unknown projectile. UKMTO is a maritime security agency that provides mariners, shipping companies, and regional authorities with verified security information on threats and incidents affecting commercial shipping in the region.
A Panama-flagged tanker New Andros, carrying around two million barrels of Iraqi fuel oil, was also reported to be hit by a drone in Iraqi waters. The conflict has also widened into the broader region with Houthi forces recently attacking several facilities in Saudi Arabia.
These developments have sent oil prices higher, with Brent crude crossing the 100 USD per barrel mark and WTI moving above 95 USD today, rising by almost 3%. Brent is the benchmark used to price a very large share of internationally traded crude. WTI, or West Texas Intermediate, is the main US crude-oil benchmark, representing light, sweet crude produced in the United States. With shipping lanes and energy infrastructure increasingly coming under attack, prolonged disruption could put further upward pressure on oil prices and add to global economic pressures.
The US-Iran conflict has seen a sharp escalation since yesterday, with attacks reported on military targets as well as commercial shipping in and around the Persian Gulf. For perhaps the first time in this conflict, several ships have been hit directly in just a few hours.
The US says it destroyed five Iranian oil tankers, following Iranian missile attacks on a US Navy ship. Iran has claimed that it attacked two US navy ships and eight oil tankers near the restricted zone around the Strait of Hormuz. The UKMTO has confirmed that several merchant vessels were hit by disabling fire during the overnight military activity.
The escalation has also pushed oil prices higher. Brent crude has crossed 100 dollars a barrel, while WTI has moved above 95 dollars, raising concerns that prolonged disruption to shipping and energy supplies could put further pressure on the global economy.
