{"id":524951,"date":"2026-07-14T03:51:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T03:51:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/524951\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T03:51:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T03:51:14","slug":"us-resumes-strikes-on-iran-as-tehran-hits-uae-tankers-and-bahrain-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/524951\/","title":{"rendered":"US resumes strikes on Iran as Tehran hits UAE tankers and Bahrain"},"content":{"rendered":"

The US launched strikes on Iran, hours after US President Donald Trump said Washington is \u201creinstating\u201d a blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump separately suggested the United States will charge other ships for safe passage, upending hundreds of years of American policy supporting freedom of navigation across the globe.<\/p>\n

Iran responded with attacks targeting Bahrain and two tankers associated with the United Arab Emirates travelling through the strait, killing one mariner and wounding eight others. The Emirates threatened to retaliate against Iran, potentially drawing the nation home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai back into fighting with Tehran.<\/p>\n

The attacks come as Iran and the US both vie for control of the strait through which a fifth of all crude oil and natural gas once passed in peacetime. The price of benchmark Brent crude oil rose 7.8% to $81.92 a barrel, still well below the nearly $120 reached at the height of the war but threatening to make costs everywhere higher.<\/p>\n

Trump insists strait will be open<\/p>\n

The US military’s Central Command said it struck areas around Abu Musa, Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Chahbahar, Jask and Konarak, targeting Iranian \u201ccoastal defense systems, missile and drone sites and maritime capabilities”.<\/p>\n

Iran acknowledged strikes around those areas, but provided no immediate casualty or damage assessments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese strikes will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack innocent civilians and commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,\u201d the US military said.<\/p>\n

Moments after the military announced the new strikes, Trump called it \u201canother major attack.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re hitting them very hard. And it\u2019ll continue, and we\u2019ll see what happens,\u201d he told reporters in the Oval Office. \u201cWe\u2019re knocking out all of their offensive capability and we\u2019re controlling the straits. We\u2019re putting the blockade back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump also provided new details on his administration doing an about-face and suggesting it will charge tolls for ships going through the strait, after previously suggesting that it wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re protecting a very rich portion of the world,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re spending money. And so, what we\u2019ve done is, we are going to be reimbursed for protection.\u201d<\/p>\n

It’s a change in US policy that, until now, said the strait should remain open to all without tolls \u2014 as it was before the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. Any attempt by the US or Iran to charge fees would violate global norms on freedom of navigation and raise tensions, likely causing further economic disruption far beyond the region.<\/p>\n

\"President<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump departs after speaking at an event to promote the Freedom 250 Grand Prix IndyCar race in August, Monday, July 13, 2026, on West Executive Drive at the White House in Washington. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Attacks resume across the Mideast<\/p>\n

The United Arab Emirates\u2019 Defense Ministry said early Tuesday that Iran attacked two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, killing one mariner and wounding eight others.<\/p>\n

The Emirati Defense Ministry said Iran launched two cruise missiles at the tankers Mombasa and Al Bahiyah.<\/p>\n

The attacks set both tankers ablaze, though the fires were extinguished.<\/p>\n

Bahrain also came under renewed attack early Tuesday morning as Iran retaliated over the latest round of US airstrikes. Bahrain sounded its missile alert siren, urging the public to seek shelter. There was no word on any damage or casualties from the attack.<\/p>\n

The Emirati Defense Ministry said the attack on the tankers killed one Indian national and wounded six Indians and two Ukrainians.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe UAE reserves its full right to respond to this escalation and to take all necessary measures to protect its territory, its citizens and residents,\u201d the Defense Ministry added.<\/p>\n

The Emirates used similar language before launching attacks against Iran during the war. Fighter jets could be heard overheard Tuesday morning in Dubai.<\/p>\n

The struggle over the Strait is escalating<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A screenshot from a video shared by the US military showing a jet taking off from an aircraft carrier. (Source: Supplied)<\/p>\n

The International Maritime Organization, the United Nations agency overseeing international shipping, said it was waiting to find out more about Trump\u2019s proposal but remained opposed to tolls for passage through international waterways.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no legal basis through which to introduce mandatory tolls simply to transit through a strait,\u201d it said in a statement.<\/p>\n

A fifth of the world\u2019s oil and gas passed through the Strait before Iran effectively shut it down at the start of the war, driving up global prices of energy, fertiliser and other goods. Traffic had picked up after last month’s agreement, but remained well below prewar levels.<\/p>\n

The US military said it struck dozens of sites on Monday (local time) in response to an Iranian attack on a container ship the day before, including air defence systems, radar sites, missile and drone equipment, and small boats. <\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A submarine and ship maintenance facility in Iran is struck by US forces. (Source: Supplied)<\/p>\n

It said it used drone ships to hit an Iranian ship maintenance facility and a submarine on Sunday, calling it a first.<\/p>\n

The American military has tried to establish a route through the Strait along the coast of Oman that would be outside of Iranian control. Iran has attacked ships using that route, saying the US is violating the interim peace deal<\/a>. The US has attacked Iran in response, drawing Iranian attacks on US-allied Arab states. The US also ended waivers allowing Iran to sell crude oil on the open market in US dollars.<\/p>\n

The US had opposed charging fees in the Strait<\/p>\n

Meeting with Gulf leaders late last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken forcefully against Iran charging fees for transit through the Strait.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s international waterway. There isn\u2019t a nation on Earth that supports having to pay money to go through the Straits,\u201d Rubio told reporters in Bahrain on June 25.<\/p>\n

\"Residents<\/p>\n

Residents check their cellphones as they sit at a cafe overlooking commercial vessels anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Sunday, July 12, 2026. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Rubio also said there was \u201czero support among the Gulf countries for any sort of toll or fees or anything that charges for the use of international waters. The President\u2019s made it clear that\u2019s not going to happen\u201d.<\/p>\n

US-allied Arab states report another wave of attacks<\/p>\n

Missile alert sirens sounded three times Monday in Bahrain, home to the US Navy\u2019s 5th Fleet. There was no immediate word on damage.<\/p>\n

Separately, Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry said its consulate in Iraq had been attacked. It did not immediately blame anyone for the attack or disclose damages or casualties.<\/p>\n

The oil-rich kingdom also condemned Iran and \u201cits factions and militias loyal to it in Iraq\u201d for attacking what it described as \u201cseveral border points\u201d and a maritime oil drilling platform that belonged to the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.<\/p>\n

Kuwait and Washington share strong ties, and the tiny country along the Persian Gulf hosts several US military bases.<\/p>\n

In Jordan, the kingdom’s military said it shot down four Iranian missiles in an incident that \u201cresulted in zero casualties or material damage\u201d. Jordan also hosts US military forces and aircraft.<\/p>\n

In Iran, authorities reported attacks in Hormozgan, Khuzestan and Markazi provinces and said at least two people were killed, according to state-run IRNA news agency. Semiofficial Iranian media also reported strikes in the eastern Sistan and Baluchestan province, which is on the coast of the Gulf of Oman.<\/p>\n

Iran blames the US for the chaos in the region<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The aftermath of a US strike carried out by US forces in Iran. (Source: Supplied)<\/p>\n

The attacks on Iran continued hours after the US ended its strikes \u2014 again raising the possibility of Gulf Arab states retaliating. There were unclaimed attacks on Iran on Thursday (local time).<\/p>\n

A base belonging to the armed wing of an Iranian Kurdish opposition group based in Iraq\u2019s semiautonomous Kurdish region came under drone attack on Monday, according to Rebaz Sharifi, a local commander. There were no immediate details on casualties or damage. No group immediately claimed responsibility.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei blamed Washington for the chaos gripping the region. He said Iran wouldn’t agree to visits by the International Atomic Energy Agency to nuclear sites the US bombed in 2025. That’s where Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium is believed to be entombed.<\/p>\n

Trump suggested last week that the interim deal in the war was \u201cover\u201d. But mediators, including Pakistan, Qatar and Egypt, have continued efforts to reach a final agreement to end the war.<\/p>\n

Iran and the US are nearly halfway through the 60-day period in which they were supposed to negotiate such an agreement, which was also supposed to address Iran’s disputed nuclear programme.<\/p>\n

Additional reporting by 1News.<\/p>\n

The morning’s headlines in 90 seconds, Oil prices spike as a US blockade looms \u2026 Terrorism charges laid over a political killing and a burglar ruffles feathers in Auckland. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The US launched strikes on Iran, hours after US President Donald Trump said Washington is \u201creinstating\u201d a blockade…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":524873,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[65,42,5107,43,40,38,41,39,66],"class_list":["post-524951","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-donald-trump","tag-headlines","tag-middle-east","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-us-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/524951","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=524951"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/524951\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/524873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=524951"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=524951"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=524951"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}