Two tanker ships were set on fire in Iraqi waters on Thursday (12), an apparent escalation in Iranian attacks that have shaken energy supplies in the Middle East, challenging the claim by U.S. President Donald Trump that he had already won the war he launched two weeks ago.
The images, verified by Reuters as having been filmed from the Basra port’s coast, showed the ships enveloped in enormous orange balls of fire that lit up the night sky.
Iraqi authorities said the ships were attacked overnight by Iranian boats loaded with explosives. At least one crew member was killed.
Hours earlier, three other ships had been hit in the Gulf. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran claimed responsibility for at least one of these attacks, against a burning Thai bulk carrier which, according to the Guard, had disobeyed its orders.
Another container ship reported being struck by an unknown projectile near the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, according to a maritime security official.
The war, launched by the United States and Israel and so far killing about 2,000 people, has caused the greatest disruption to the global energy supply since the oil shocks of the 1970s.
Undermining the United States and Israel’s claims that they had eliminated much of Iran’s long-range weapons stock, there were reports of more drones on Thursday flying to Kuwait, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman.
Oil prices, which had fallen earlier in the week after Trump said the war would end soon, rose again above US$100 per barrel.
Iran said it would not permit oil to pass along the world’s most important energy trade route—the Strait of Hormuz, which runs along its coast—until U.S. and Israeli attacks ceased, and that it would not engage in any negotiations with Washington.
Citibank announced on Thursday that it would temporarily close its branches in the United Arab Emirates, a day after Iran said banks were legitimate targets and warned Middle Eastern residents to stay 1,000 meters from them. HSBC closed branches in Qatar.
Oil prices rose on Thursday despite the previous day’s announcement that developed nations would release 400 million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves, almost half of the United States’
reserves.
This is, by far, the largest coordinated intervention ever undertaken in oil markets. But it would take months to implement and would represent only about three weeks of supply from the blocked Strait.
“The only way to see oil prices trade lower on a sustained basis is to have the oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz,” ING analysts said. “If this is not done, it means the market’s highs are still ahead of us.”
