DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Three tankers were struck by projectiles Tuesday in the Strait of Hormuz, the British military said, in the latest attacks targeting vessels moving through the fuel-shipping waterway that is central to negotiations seeking a permanent end to the war between the U.S. and Iran.
The new assaults were the most in a single day since late April, according to U.N. International Maritime Organization figures. The fresh attacks 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.
One tanker was traveling off the coast of Oman and caught fire, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center. 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.
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.
U.S. Central Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Tuesday's attacks.
Talks between US and Iran are on hold
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 Feb. 28. An interim deal has been strained.
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 honored him Tuesday.