U.S.-Iran war widens with tanker strikes, Hormuz blockade and oil-price shock as allies weigh record reserve release
The United States and Iran signaled no quick end to their war as suspected Iranian attacks on fuel tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and fresh strikes across the Middle East kept the world’s busiest oil chokepoint effectively shut and sent crude higher. Nearly two weeks into a joint U.S.-Israeli air campaign, about 2,000 people have been killed — mostly Iranians and Lebanese — and global shipping and energy markets remain on edge.
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Port officials and maritime risk firms said explosive-laden Iranian boats appeared to have attacked two fuel tankers in Iraqi waters, setting them ablaze and killing one crew member, after projectiles struck three vessels in Gulf waters. Despite what the Pentagon called its most intense airstrikes of the war, Iran continued to hit targets in Israel and around the region, underscoring its capacity to retaliate.
Oil, which surged earlier in the week toward $120 a barrel before easing near $90, rose nearly 5% Friday. In an extraordinary move, the International Energy Agency — representing major consuming nations — recommended releasing 400 million barrels from strategic reserves to cool prices, the biggest such intervention on record. “This appears to mark a direct and forceful Iranian response to the IEA’s overnight announcement,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG. President Donald Trump said the IEA decision “will substantially reduce oil prices,” and Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the U.S. would release 172 million barrels from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve starting next week.
There was still no sign ships could safely transit the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow channel along Iran’s coast that carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil. An Iranian military spokesperson said the strait was “undoubtedly” under Iran’s control. The Group of Seven agreed to examine naval escorts to restore freedom of navigation, even as regional sources said Iran had deployed about a dozen mines, complicating any reopening.
Trump, speaking at a campaign-style rally in Kentucky, declared the United States had “won” the war but said he wanted to “finish the job” so Washington would not have to return “every two years.” He said U.S. forces had knocked out 58 Iranian naval ships and described the strait as “in great shape,” adding that Iran had “some missiles, but not very many.” The Pentagon’s figures could not be independently verified.
At home, ABC News reported the FBI had warned of potential Iranian drone threats to the U.S. West Coast, though Trump said he was not worried about strikes on American soil. The State Department cautioned that Iran and aligned militias could target U.S.-owned oil and energy infrastructure in Iraq, noting past militia attacks on hotels frequented by Americans.
U.S. and Israeli officials said their objective is to end Iran’s ability to project force beyond its borders and to dismantle its nuclear program. An Israeli military official said the country still had an extensive list of targets in Iran, including ballistic missile and nuclear-related sites, signaling further strikes ahead.
The human toll is mounting. The United Nations Children’s Fund said more than 1,100 children had been killed or injured. Drone and missile barrages have struck ports and cities in Gulf states as well as targets in Israel, widening the battlefield beyond Iran and Lebanon.
Iran has framed the conflict as an economic struggle as much as a military one, warning the world to “get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel” and linking prices to the regional security it says the United States has destabilized. After offices of a bank in Tehran were hit overnight, Iran threatened to target banks that do business with the U.S. or Israel and warned people across the Middle East to stay 1,000 meters from bank buildings.
Even if fully executed, the IEA’s reserve plan would cover only a fraction of the crude that normally flows through Hormuz, leaving markets vulnerable as the Group of Seven studies convoy options and militaries on both sides trade blows. With shipping lanes constrained, prices climbing and civilian casualties rising, the risk of miscalculation — and a broader regional confrontation — is growing by the day.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
