Gulf Conflict Spreads Across Shipping Lanes, Jordan and Saudi Arabia
US forces struck five Iranian tankers near the Gulf of Oman and Kharg Island after the IRGC allegedly tried twice to hit a US warship with ballistic missiles; US officials said the warship evaded the attacks and no American personnel were harmed.[1][2][6] Iran then launched missiles toward a US base in Jordan, where Jordanian forces said they intercepted 18 missiles and two fell in unpopulated areas without reported casualties.[1][6] Separately, Iran-backed Houthis attacked four southern Saudi cities with missiles and drones, wounding 73 people and setting oil installations ablaze, according to Saudi authorities.[4]
The exchanges now directly threaten US forces, regional allies and energy infrastructure around the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about one-fifth of the world's oil before the war.[4][6] Oil benchmarks have returned toward $100 a barrel as renewed fighting and competing blockades constrain energy flows.[3][4]
Key insights
- CENTCOM described the targeted tankers as part of a multibillion-dollar network funding the IRGC and regional proxies, framing commercial shipping as part of Iran's war-financing system.[1][7]
- Iran claimed additional attacks on two US vessels and eight tankers, but the supplied evidence does not independently verify the reported damage.[2]
- The IRGC warned crews aboard US-linked tankers near Kuwaiti and Bahraini ports to leave their vessels because they would be targeted.[1]
- The Houthi operation extended pressure beyond the Strait of Hormuz by targeting a Saudi airbase and Saudi state oil company assets in Abha, Najran and Jazan.[4]