Iran Says It Attacked U.S. Vessel in Strait of Hormuz as Fighting Escalates

Iran says it attacked a U.S. unmanned vessel trying to enter the Strait of Hormuz, the latest salvo in a renewed surge of fighting between the two countries. The United States has not confirmed the alleged attack.

The claim came a day after the U.S. military said its forces had attacked three Iranian oil tankers. Washington described those strikes as a response to a missile attack on U.S. Navy warships.

The war began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb. 28. Although the two sides announced a ceasefire agreement in June, intermittent clashes continued as both sought to inflict military and economic damage after negotiations failed. The United States and Iran resumed attacks last week following a month of relative calm, again targeting the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian communities along its shores. At least five people died earlier in the week during a U.S. bombardment in southern Iran.

President Donald Trump’s government appears to be pursuing a two-track approach: responding militarily to attacks in the strait while targeting foreign financial institutions that handle Iranian money. Iran’s new hard-line leaders, meanwhile, have signaled that they are prepared to dig in after decades of sanctions.

Iran has found ways to evade sanctions and the U.S. blockade and continue sending oil to buyers to ease growing economic pressure. That effort depends partly on a clandestine fleet carrying Iranian crude. The nuclear program that helped trigger the war was supposed to be addressed in negotiations that collapsed soon after Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding in mid-June. Diplomats say the United States, Britain, France, and Germany are seeking to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council over failures to meet its nuclear nonproliferation obligations.

Tehran’s new leverage centers on the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for global oil and natural-gas shipments. Before the war, it was regarded as an international waterway.