Three tankers were struck by projectiles on Tuesday (July 7, 2026) in the Strait of Hormuz, the British military said, in the latest attacks targeting vessels moving through the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf.

The new assaults threatened to choke off the flow of traffic in the strait just as countries hoped to restore normal shipping practices and ease the global economic strain of the war between the U.S. and Iran.

West Asia War LIVE updates – July 7, 2026

One of the tankers was travelling off the coast of Oman and caught fire, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre. Iranian state television said the liquefied natural gas tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings but did not directly claim the assault.

Two other tankers were also hit, including one that was struck by a drone. It was not immediately clear where they were at the time of the attacks. Both of those ships sustained some damage, but no one was injured, the maritime agency said. At least one of the vessels continued on its way, the maritime agency said.

The third ship sustained minor damage, with no one injured, and continued on its way, the UKMTO said.

Tehran, which has repeatedly declared that only its approved route through the strait is safe, is suspected of attacking other ships that have used another route close to the Omani shore.

The U.S. is eager to press ahead with negotiations with Iran aimed at fully reopening the strait, rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program and reaching a permanent end to the war launched February 28.

Previous attacks in the strait have sparked retaliatory strikes by the U.S. Iran then attacked Gulf Arab States.

In peacetime, a fifth of all traded oil and natural gas passed through the channel.

Meanwhile, talks between Iran and the U.S. appeared to be on hold until after the burial of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the beginning of the war. Mourners at his funeral have called for the death of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Authorities flew Khamenei’s body to the Shiite seminary city of Qom, where mourners honoured him.

A cargo ship came under attack on Sunday (July 5, 2026) off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea, the British military said, the latest maritime attack off the conflict-torn Arab country.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre reported the attack off the coastal city of Hodeida, which is under control of the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.

The UKMTO said the ship reported being “under attack by unknown armed assailants” 30 nautical miles (55 kilometres) southwest of Hodeida, and that authorities were investigating: No group immediately claimed the attack.

The Houthis have threatened to begin attacking ships again, though they have not been carrying out attacks. A Houthi spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The rebels previously fired drones and missiles at ships that pass by territory they control near the narrow Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea. Their attacks over the course of the Gaza war forced shipping companies to reroute vessels around the southern tip of Africa instead of through the Suez Canal at the northern end of the Red Sea.

Somali pirates also have been active further away in the Gulf of Aden recently.

Suspected pirates attacked a vessel 76 nautical miles (140 kilometres) south of the port town of Balhaf in southeastern Yemen on July 1. Four armed men on a small craft caused minor damage to the ship’s bridge, according to the UKMTO.