Iran widens Gulf strikes as Hormuz closure drives oil higher
Why it matters: Brent jumped to $79.11 a barrel as the fighting threatened a route that once carried a fifth of global oil and LNG shipments.
Iran and the United States traded new missile and drone attacks on July 12, widening the conflict across the Gulf as Tehran said it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian strikes reached Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, while US Central Command said it resumed attacks on Iran to weaken its ability to target commercial shipping in the waterway. Iranian media reported blasts around Sirik, Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island. The renewed fighting also clouded a June interim US-Iran agreement meant to reopen the strait and advance talks. Oman-hosted discussions in Muscat on July 11 failed to produce an arrangement for managing transit through the route.