Naval items from Iran and Russia perform to simulation of rescue a hijacked vessel throughout the joint naval drills held on the Port of Bandar Abbas close to the Strait of Hormuz in Hormozgan, Iran on February 19, 2026.
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Three vessels off Iran’s coast have been struck by projectiles, the UK Maritime Commerce Operations stated on Wednesday, the most recent in a flurry of incidents reported in or close to the Strait of Hormuz.
One of many ships reported it had been struck 11 nautical miles north of Oman within the Strait of Hormuz, inflicting a hearth onboard and forcing the crew to evacuate, the UKMTO stated.
Two different incidents have been additionally reported on Wednesday morning, with one vessel struck by a projectile about 50 nautical miles northwest of Dubai and one other sustaining harm off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
The UKMTO urged vessels within the space to transit with warning and report any suspicious exercise whereas authorities proceed to analyze.
Transport site visitors via the strategically very important Strait of Hormuz has floor to a close to standstill because the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on Feb. 28. Iran has retaliated by concentrating on ships attempting to cross via the strait, with a number of incidents reported in current days.
The waterway is a slender maritime hall that connects the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Roughly 20% of world oil and fuel sometimes passes via it.
U.S. forces sank a number of Iranian ships on Tuesday, together with 16 minelayers, close to the Strait of Hormuz, in accordance with U.S. Central Command.
The replace adopted an earlier announcement from U.S. President Donald Trump that stated if Iran had put any mines within the waterway, “we wish them eliminated, IMMEDIATELY!”
The UKMTO stated it had obtained 17 studies of incidents affecting vessels working in and across the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman between Feb. 28, when the battle started, and March 11. These embody 13 assault studies and 4 studies of suspicious exercise.
“Iran’s speedy and in depth retaliation in opposition to transport and regional vitality, port and financial infrastructure has severed an important artery in international provide chains, because the circulate of oil, refined merchandise, LNG and chemical compounds grinds to a close to halt,” Torbjorn Soltvedt, principal Center East analyst in danger intelligence firm Verisk Maplecroft, stated Wednesday in a word.
“Extra assaults in opposition to ships in and across the Strait of Hormuz in a single day underscore that Iran nonetheless presents a really actual risk to transport,” he added.
