3 ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz, complicating efforts to resume U.S.-Iran talks
Seizures appear to represent escalation by Tehran after failed diplomatic talks
Iran fired on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz and seized two of them on Wednesday, intensifying its assault on shipping in the key waterway. The attacks came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire while maintaining an American blockade of Iranian ports.
The standoff between the U.S. and Iran has effectively choked off nearly all exports through the strait, through which 20 per cent of the world's traded oil passes in peacetime, with no end in sight. Iranian media said the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard was bringing the two ships to Iran, marking a further escalation, though the White House said the seizures didn't violate ceasefire terms.
The conflict has already sent gas prices skyrocketing far beyond the region and raised the cost of food and a wide array of other products. The longer the strait remains closed, the more severe and widespread the effects will be — and the longer it will take the economy to bounce back.
The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, nosed over $100 US per barrel, marking a 35 per cent increase from prewar levels, but stock markets still appear to be shrugging it off.
The European Union energy commissioner, Dan Jørgensen, warned of lasting impact for consumers and businesses, likening the crisis to other major energy crunches over the last half-century. He said the disruption is costing Europe around $600 million US each day.
Iran holds firm
Iranian media said the MSC Francesca and the Epaminondas were being escorted to Iran. The ships' owners could not be immediately reached for comment. The U.S. had earlier seized two Iranian vessels as the ceasefire talks were due to take place in Pakistan.
Technomar, the management company behind the Liberian-registered Epaminondas, said it was "approached and fired upon by a manned gunboat" off the coast of Oman. It said the ship's bridge had been damaged.
A second cargo ship came under fire hours later, with no report of damage, though the vessel was then stopped in the water. No injuries to the crew of either vessel were reported. The MSC Francesca's owner could not be immediately reached for comment.
The Guard attacked a third ship, identified as the Euphoria, which had become "stranded" on the Iranian coast, Iranian media reported, without elaborating.
There have been more than 30 attacks on ships in the Mideast since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28 with a surprise attack on Iran. Before then, the strait was open to all traffic.
Vortexa, an analytics firm focusing on global energy and freight markets, says it has recorded 34 movements of sanctioned and Iranian-linked tankers in and out of the Persian Gulf in the week after the U.S. imposed its blockade on April 13.
The firm identified 19 outbound and 15 inbound movements. Six of the outbound movements were "confirmed laden with Iranian crude, representing about 10.7 million barrels," it said in an email.
It was not immediately clear whether all those barrels reached markets overseas.
Unclear when talks will restart
Iran's ability to restrict traffic through the strait — which leads from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean — has proved a major strategic advantage.
While the ceasefire means that American and Israeli airstrikes have stopped in Iran — and Tehran's missiles no longer target Israel and the wider Middle East — the attacks in the strait and earlier American interdictions of Iranian ships show the maritime threat remains.
Without any diplomatic agreement, those attacks will likely deter ships from even attempting to pass through the waterway, and further squeeze global energy supplies.
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran's parliament speaker who met with U.S. Vice-President JD Vance in Pakistan earlier this month, said a complete ceasefire "only makes sense" if not violated by the blockade that is "taking the world's economy hostage."
"Reopening the Strait of Hormuz is impossible with such flagrant breach of the ceasefire," he wrote on X.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told state TV that Iran has not decided whether to take part in a new round of negotiations with the U.S. scheduled for later this week. He accused the United States of a "disregard and lack of good faith" in the negotiations.
Mojtaba Ferdousi Pour, the head of the Iranian mission in Egypt, had earlier told The Associated Press that no delegation would go to Pakistan until the U.S. lifts its blockade.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters in Washington that Trump hasn't set a deadline for receiving a proposal from the Iranians. "Ultimately, the timeline would be dictated by the commander in chief in the United States," she said.
In the Iranian capital of Tehran, many grappled with the uncertainty.
"We should know where we stand. Is it going to be a ceasefire, peace, or the war is going to continue?" said Mashallah Mohammad Sadegh, 59. "The way things currently are, one doesn't know what to do."
Meanwhile, in Lebanon, a 10-day ceasefire went into effect on Friday, but there have been several Israeli strikes and Hezbollah claimed its first attack on Tuesday.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said preparations were ongoing for negotiations to extend the ceasefire. Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors plan to meet again on Thursday in Washington.
Since the war started, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran, according to authorities. More than 2,290 people have been killed in Lebanon, 23 people have died in Israel and more than a dozen have died in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and 13 U.S. service members have been killed.