Shipping

3 stories

Politics
Middle East
Iran Fires Missiles at Ships in Strait of Hormuz, Testing Fragile Truce
Iran's Revolutionary Guard fired at least two missiles at commercial ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz overnight into 7 July, striking a Qatari LNG carrier and setting it on fire. Two vessels were badly damaged but no casualties were reported. The strikes are the first in the chokepoint since a US-Iran truce took hold in June, and pushed crude prices higher as Europe watches its energy lifeline.
By Camille Reuter7 July 2026
Politics
Persian Gulf
Iran's Strait of Hormuz Transit Fees Test Maritime Law and Global Oil Flows
After all but closing the Strait of Hormuz since late February, Iran turned the world's busiest oil chokepoint into a tollbooth, charging tankers up to $2 million a crossing. A US-brokered memorandum has paused the fees for 60 days, but the dispute over whether a state can charge the world to cross an international strait is far from settled.
By Camille Reuter29 June 2026
Economy
Energy security
Qatar keeps its LNG tankers sailing through Hormuz as the Gulf lane empties
Qatar kept four LNG tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz on 22 June even as Iran-driven disruption emptied the waterway, holding the line between a contained Gulf crisis and a renewed European gas-price shock.
By Jonas Thill22 June 2026