Iran conflict sees more disruption of key waterway

By Nathan Morley

Strait of Hormuz tensions threatened to upend efforts to halt the war, but President Donald Trump said a deal remained possible.

Trump earlier said the U.S. was hitting Iran “very hard” as American forces carried out a third straight night of strikes amid escalating attacks between the two countries.

U.S. Central Command said the latest strikes began at 4:45 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday at the president’s direction. 

Hours later, it said U.S. forces hit multiple military sites across Iran to “further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping.”

As pressure over the vital waterway intensified, the United Arab Emirates said Iranian cruise missiles struck two Emirati tankers Monday night, killing an Indian crew member and injuring eight others, four seriously.

Attacks in Jordan and Bahrain

Jordan and Bahrain also reported attacks overnight.

Trump wrote on social media that the U.S. was reinstating a naval blockade of Iranian ports and would impose a 20% charge on all cargo passing through the strait.