New incident: Iran hit ships in the Hormuz Strait

A commercial tanker was reportedly struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, igniting a fire. The incident occurred just hours before U.S. President Donald Trump was set to depart for a crucial NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey. Security in the vital waterway was anticipated to be a key topic of discussion among NATO leaders.

According to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the vessel was approximately eight nautical miles east of Limah, Oman, when it was hit on its left side. Unnamed U.S. officials cited by The Wall Street Journal and Axios reported that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired upon two commercial ships transiting the strait. No casualties or environmental impact have been reported thus far.

The reported attack coincides with Iran's observance of a multi-day funeral for its assassinated former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint through which a significant portion of the world's crude oil flowed before the war, has been repeatedly used by Tehran as a bargaining chip. Iranian media and a Telegram channel linked to the IRGC indicated that the IRGC navy had deployed patrol boats to block the "Omani route."