United States reinstates sanctions on Iranian oil after attacks on ships in Strait of Hormuz

The United States has reinstated sanctions on Iran's oil industry, revoking a special license that had temporarily lifted economic restrictions. This administrative measure was taken as a direct response to a series of projectile attacks against three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, an escalation that coincides with bilateral negotiations aimed at pacifying the Middle East conflict.

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Iran's actions in the Strait were totally unacceptable for the United States and will have consequences.

The sanctions waiver, initially formalized in June, had permitted the Islamic Republic to conduct crude oil and derivative production, marketing, and supply operations. The waiver was set to expire on August 21, 2026. A U.S. Treasury Department spokesperson told AFP that "Iran's actions in the Strait were totally unacceptable for the United States and will have consequences."

According to reports from the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency, an "unidentified projectile" initially struck a tanker, causing a fire. Within hours, two other commercial vessels were hit in waters near Oman's coast, with at least one impact attributed to an unmanned aerial vehicle (drone). Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed Al Ansari, held Tehran "fully legally responsible" for the incident involving a Qatari-flagged LNG tanker, the Al-Rekayyat.

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We consider Iran fully legally responsible for this attack and for any resulting damage or repercussions.

Iran's Foreign Ministry, through its spokesperson Esmail Baqai, rejected Qatar's accusations as "questionable" and contrary to neighborly relations. The attacks occurred in a maritime sector where the Sultanate of Oman had proposed an alternative temporary transit corridor, an initiative opposed by Iran, which seeks to impose tariffs and tolls on navigation in the strait. The reactivation of hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for Persian Gulf crude oil exports, has disrupted the fragile navigation agreement between Washington and Tehran, leading to an immediate increase in geopolitical tension and a latent risk to global hydrocarbon supply, with international oil prices rising.

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