Hormuz

Strategy or physical withdrawal: What does Washington’s shift from airstrikes to sanctions signify?

Despite the apparent success of the US’s blockade and sanctions campaign, Iranian officials have repeatedly expressed that they would not falter in maintaining control over the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump reacts as he speaks to the media with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent behind him, on the day of a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara, Turkey, July 8, 2026.
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent takes questions from reporters as he speaks during a press conference in Washington, DC on August 24, 2026. Bessent, in a column for the Financial Times, declared that an "economic D-Day" had begun against Tehran on Monday.

Iran economic sanctions leading to extremist regime elements gaining power, dissident says - report

Drone view of oil tanker HELGA berthed at one of Iraq's southern offshore oil terminals near Basra as it prepares to load crude oil, becoming the second vessel to arrive since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, April 24, 2026.

Several oil companies to avoid using ships on Iran's blacklist over security concerns, sources say

STRAIT OF HORMUZ, OMAN/IRAN -- JUNE 16, 2026: 01 -- Maps4media-processed Sentinel-2 satellite imagery shows a broad overview of the Strait of Hormuz, including the Musandam Peninsula, nearby islands, coastal shallows, and the narrow maritime corridor linking the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman.

Iran's Strait of Hormuz strategy exposes the limits of destruction - opinion


US CENTCOM strikes Iran, marking the eleventh consecutive night of bombardment

"The strikes are designed to continue degrading Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz," the US Central Command said in a statement on X.

US Air Force Rockwell B-1B Lancer dropping JDAM bombs photographed from the canopy of an escort fighter jet.

Iran secretly submitted proposal for 10-day ceasefire while under intense US strikes - exclusive

The mediators, including senior Qatari, Egyptian, Omani, and Pakistani officials, have presented the proposal to the United States.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks during a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (not pictured) in Tehran, Iran, November 30, 2025.

ASEAN's top diplomats meet, to issue statement amid 'grave concern' over US-Iran conflict

ASEAN will gather against the backdrop of instability beyond the region since the US and Iran resumed open conflict, raising concerns about energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and inflation.

ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn, other South Asian Foreign Ministers during the opening ceremony of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay city, Philippines, July 21, 2026.

Iran targets Kuwaiti infrastructure to send 'calibrated signal' to US following direct strikes

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed the attacks had been on a US military support center at Kuwait's Camp Arifjan, and alleged it had destroyed a radar facility at Ali Al Salem Air Base.

Smoke billows near the oil facility in Mangaf, Kuwait, July 18, 2026.

American refueling tankers to be stationed in IDF bases, Ramon Airport as US reinforces Middle East

A senior security official said that as more US forces arrive in the region, coordination with the militaries will tighten, while the US military is also redeploying F-35 and F-15 aircraft and dozens

US Air Force Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aerial refueling aircraft are parked at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv on February 25, 2026.

CENTCOM 'holding Iran accountable,' completes sixth night of strikes against military targets

CENTCOM added that over 50,000 US service members stationed in the Middle East remain "vigilant, lethal, and ready."

US forces operating in the Strait of Hormuz, July 17, 2026.

US sanctions network accused of procuring weapons for IRGC as Iran ramps up strikes in Hormuz

Those targeted allegedly used aviation and logistics companies in Iran, Italy, and Russia to source arms and drone components in violation of renewed UN restrictions.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (2nd-R) and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (R) attend a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and Prime Minister of Iraq Ali al-Zaidi in the Oval Office of the White House on July 14, 2026 in Washington, DC.

‘I want to be reimbursed’: How will Gulf nations receive Trump’s push for protection payments?

“Trump is transactional, always looking for where the money is. He's a businessman; he admits it, and he's not ashamed of it; he's proud of it. The Gulf States understood that from the beginning."

US President Donald Trump speaks at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), in front of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 14, 2025.

Renewed US blockade on Iranian ports in Strait of Hormuz closer pushes region closer to open war

Initially, the US undertook limited targeted counterstrikes at Iranian assets around Hormuz to convince Iran to back down.

Commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM) Navy Adm. Brad Cooper testifies during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 14, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Explosions heard around Iran's Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island in Strait of Hormuz - report

The reported explosions came hours after US Central Command announced that American forces had completed a wave of strikes against Iran in the early morning hours of Monday.

A ship in the Strait of Hormuz, June 2026