The ships were hit near Oman on Monday, the
latest attacks on vessels in the Persian Gulf. Oil prices rose more than 2 percent.
·
Two
tankers attacked: Two
oil tankers were struck by unknown
projectiles within minutes of each other while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on 31 August 2026.
·
Vessels
targeted:
o A crude tanker owned by Saudi Arabia's national oil company was hit about 16 nautical miles off Oman.
o A Liberian-flagged
supertanker operated by South Korea's Sinokor
was reportedly hit by three projectiles.
·
No
casualties: No
deaths, injuries or environmental damage were reported from the two attacks.
·
U.S.
retaliation: On
Tuesday, U.S. forces struck targets belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), citing recent attacks on commercial
shipping and U.S. personnel.
·
Oil
prices surge: Oil
prices rose by more
than 4%, with
the global crude benchmark moving back above
$90 a barrel amid
renewed fears over Gulf supply disruptions.
·
Shipping
risk remains high:
Maritime risk firm Marisks described the threat to
commercial shipping as high
and increasingly unpredictable,
advising vessels to postpone nonessential transit.
·
Ships
with U.S./ally links at greater risk:
Marisks said Iran appeared to be targeting vessels
based on their connections
or affiliations with the U.S. and its allies, rather than randomly.
·
Hormuz
traffic nearly halted: Only five ships passed through the Strait on Monday—the
lowest level since early May.
·
Major
global chokepoint:
Before the war, more
than 130 ships a day
crossed the Strait, carrying roughly one-fifth
of global oil supplies and
substantial volumes of gas.
·
Oil
exports sharply reduced:
Before March, nearly 15
million barrels per day of
oil moved through the Strait. Current exports are substantially lower, with the
U.S. claiming around 8
million bpd,
although independent analysts estimate less.
·
U.S.
naval role: The
U.S. Navy is blockading Iranian oil shipments at sea and assisting vessels
using the southern
route near Oman. It
was unclear whether the two vessels attacked had received U.S. assistance.
·
Repeated
attacks: The
latest incidents were reportedly at least the ninth attacks on ships in the past month. Since March, more than 72 attacks on vessels have been recorded, with at
least 19
sailors killed,
according to the International Maritime Organization.
·
Shipping
companies remain cautious:
Many operators consider the region too dangerous to restore normal commercial
traffic.
The latest tanker
attacks demonstrate that the Strait
of Hormuz remains a critical and highly vulnerable oil-supply chokepoint. With shipping largely stalled, repeated
attacks and U.S.-Iran military escalation are increasing the risk of higher crude prices, disrupted energy supplies
and prolonged uncertainty for global shipping.
Two
oil tankers were attacked within minutes of each other while passing through the
Strait of Hormuz on Monday (31.08.2026), a reflection of the continued risk for
ships seeking to export oil from the Persian Gulf.
One
ship, a crude oil tanker owned by Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, was struck
by “unknown projectiles” about 16 nautical miles off the coast of Oman, according
to Marisks, a maritime risk firm. A second ship, a Liberian-flagged
supertanker operated by the South Korean company Sinokor, was reportedly struck by “three unknown projectiles”
off the coast of Oman. The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations center,
which is run by Britain’s Royal Navy, reported an incident on Monday in the same
location. No casualties or environmental impact were reported, the agency said.
On
Tuesday, U.S. forces retaliated by striking Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps targets.
“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping
in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region,”
U.S. Central Command said on social media.
Oil
prices jumped and were up more than 4 percent. On Monday, the United States and
Iran had exchanged attacks for the first time in a month, raising fears among traders,
who pushed the global benchmark for crude back above $90 a barrel, after a sharp
fall last week.
The
threat to commercial shipping in the strait was both high and “increasingly unpredictable,”
Marisks said. It was advising ships to delay nonessential
transits until the scale of the U.S. attacks and Iran’s potential response became
clearer.
Dimitris
Maniatis, the founder and chief executive of Marisks,
said Iran was targeting vessels in the Persian Gulf not at random, but because of
their affiliations to the United States and allies. Even if ships are not directly
owned by U.S. companies, any ships with links to the United States are at higher
risk.
Saudi-linked
ships may also face additional risk, Marisks said.
“Everybody
says the situation is deteriorating and getting worse,” Mr. Maniatis said. “But
it’s not getting worse; it’s a repetition of the same thing.” Iran has carried out
fewer attacks on Gulf neighbors recently and has lashed
out at vessels instead, he said.
Shipping
in the Strait of Hormuz has been mostly at a standstill in recent months. Five ships
passed through the strait on Monday, the lowest level since early May. Before the
war, more than 130 ships a day transited the vital waterway between Iran and Oman,
which carried one-fifth of the world’s oil and a large amount of gas.
The
U.S. Navy, which is blockading Iranian oil at sea from exiting the region, is also
helping ships navigate the southern route near Oman. Iran has for months taken near
total control of deciding which ships pass through the strait close to its coastline.
It was not immediately clear if the ships that were attacked on Monday had been
receiving help from U.S. forces.
The
Trump administration has sought to play down the disruption to oil exports from
the Persian Gulf. The U.S. energy secretary, Chris Wright, said last month that
eight million barrels of oil a day were being exported, though many independent
analysts have said the number is lower. Before March, nearly 15 million barrels
of oil a day were sent through the strait.
Many
shipping companies say the situation is too dangerous to resume regular trade in
the region. The latest attacks on Monday night were at least the ninth to have taken
place in the past month, and there have been more than 72 attacks on ships since
March, according to the International Maritime Organization, a U.N. agency. At least
19 sailors have been killed.
On
Saturday, a tanker was hit off the coast of Oman, according to the U.K. Maritime
Trade Operations center. The ship was struck by an unknown
projectile while transiting inbound in the Strait of Hormuz, though no casualties
were reported, the agency said.