The US and Iran launched new attacks in the Gulf on Monday as they wrestled for control over the Strait of Hormuz with dueling maritime blockades, shaking a fragile truce.
The fresh volleys of missiles and drones came after US President Donald Trump launched a new effort to get stranded tankers and other ships through the strait, the vital energy-trade chokepoint that has been virtually closed since the US and Israel began attacks on Iran in February, a war that has killed thousands of people across the region.
Before Monday was out, several merchant ships in the Gulf reported explosions or fires, the US said it had destroyed six small Iranian military boats, and an oil port in the United Arab Emirates, which hosts a large US military base, was set ablaze by Iranian missiles.
Trump said in a Truth Social post that the US shot down seven small Iranian boats, adding that the vessels were “all they (Iran) have left”.