The US launched a fresh round of strikes against targets in Iran, following the targeting of a second commercial ship in two days. This escalation comes amidst heightened tensions, which have repeatedly tested a fragile ceasefire between the two nations that was established in early April. The strikes threaten to derail ongoing talks aimed at a more permanent peace deal, including an extension of the current two-month truce and the reopening of the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
The recent incidents build on a series of military exchanges. Earlier this month, the US and Iran exchanged military strikes after days of rising tensions, including Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon. In May, US forces struck Iranian military targets for the second time in a week and shot down four Iranian drones fired at a commercial ship near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, in turn, reported targeting a US base.
The strikes also follow prior attacks by the US on Iranian targets after Iran fired on US Navy destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz in early May. The Strait of Hormuz is a critical waterway through which approximately 20% of the world's oil and gas supplies typically pass. The disruption to traffic through the Strait has been significant, with only 36 ships transiting in the week leading up to a recent report, compared to an average of more than 130 ships per day before the conflict began, impacting global energy flows and potentially fertilizer supplies.
