Iran told Washington that “an errant part of their system” was behind a series of attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, according to senior US officials. The explanation has not been confirmed publicly by Tehran, while Washington is seeking an Iranian commitment to halt attacks on shipping and keep passage through the strait unrestricted and free of tolls.
Iran’s foreign ministry has rejected Qatar’s accusation that Tehran was responsible for an attack on the Qatari-owned LNG carrier Al Rekayyat. Spokesman Esmail Baghaei called the allegation questionable and unacceptable.
Baghaei warned that vessels using routes not coordinated with Tehran, or switching off or manipulating AIS and GPS equipment, could create collision and environmental risks and obstruct efforts to maintain safe passage.
US Central Command identified the ships involved as the Marshall Islands-flagged LNG carrier Al Rekayyat, the Saudi Arabia-flagged tanker Wedyan and the Liberia-flagged tanker Cyprus Prosperity. CENTCOM attributed all three attacks to Iranian forces, while Iran has not publicly accepted responsibility.
Al Rekayyat was struck by a projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on 7 July. No crew members were injured and no environmental damage occurred.
Qatar’s foreign ministry later summoned Iran’s deputy ambassador to Doha, Mohsen Mohammad Ghanei. Ibrahim bin Yousef Fakhro, director of the ministry’s Protocol Department, handed him a protest note seeking an urgent explanation and measures to prevent further attacks.
The incidents were followed by US strikes against more than 80 targets in Iran, including air-defence systems, coastal radar sites, anti-ship capabilities and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boats. Iran subsequently struck US military sites in Gulf states.
The disruption helped drive crude prices to their largest weekly increase in eight weeks. Before the confrontation, the Strait of Hormuz handled about one-fifth of global oil and LNG shipments.