The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Sunday that it has received a report of an incident involving a tanker about 60 nautical miles south of Yemen's
Mocha. The vessel's crew reported seeing multiple explosions close to the tanker, the agency said. The crew are safe and there has been no reported environmental impact. This comes after the Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said it had targeted an Aramco facility in Riyadh with ballistic missiles and drones. In a separate incident, two other tankers were reportedly struck over the weekend in waters near Oman and the Strait of Hormuz. On Saturday, UKMTO said a crude oil tanker was hit by an unknown projectile about four nautical miles east of Oman. A second tanker was reported to have been struck on Sunday in the Strait of Hormuz, with damage to its engine room. The incidents come as Iran maintains that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen unless its conditions for ending the war with the US are met. Iranian state media outlet Nour News quoted parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as saying: "The Strait of Hormuz will not open until Iran's seven conditions based on the Islamabad Memorandum are met, and Iran will not regulate its national security with tweets from American officials." The Strait is a major global energy route. Before the start of the US and Israel-led war on 28 February, about a fifth of the world's oil supplies moved through it.
Iran's Conditions
US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed an interim agreement in June, known as the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, which led to a brief pause in fighting. Iran's conditions for allowing shipping through the Strait include an end to what it calls US "acts of aggression", the lifting of the US naval blockade of its ports and an end to economic warfare, as well as the release of Iranian assets.
The US has demanded that Iran dismantle its nuclear weapons programme.
Saudi Energy Facility Targeted
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure has reportedly come under renewed attack. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said it had targeted an Aramco facility in Riyadh with ballistic missiles and drones. The group said the attack was in retaliation for Saudi strikes on Sanaa and other parts of Yemen.
A large plume of smoke and fire was reported above the facility, according to Reuters. Saudi authorities have not commented on the reported attack, while Aramco did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Fears of Further Escalation
Some analysts and investors expect fighting in the region to intensify. "The situation is fluid and volatile. To me, as we are developing and looking at the situation, it's not a question of if, but when the conflict resumes full force," Bader Al-Saif, founding president of Al-Saif Consulting, told CNBC.
The attacks and concerns over further escalation have pushed energy prices higher in recent weeks, contributing to rising inflation expectations and putting pressure on government borrowing costs.
Reports that the US was sending a third aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East, along with an amphibious force carrying about 2,000 Marines, pushed crude prices higher on Thursday.
Prices later fell after G7 countries announced the release of diesel and crude oil stocks.
Brent crude futures fell 6 cents to close at $102.25 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped $1.76 to settle at $91.11.
