Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reportedly fired at least two missiles at commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, damaging two vessels and sending a fresh shock through one of the world’s most important energy routes. U.S. officials told Axios that both ships suffered significant damage but that no casualties were reported, while UK Maritime Trade Operations confirmed that a tanker near Oman was hit by an unknown projectile on its port side, causing a fire.

The clearest identified target so far is the Al Rekayyat, a Qatari LNG tanker that Reuters reported was loaded with liquefied natural gas when it was struck while traveling through the Omani side of the strait. The vessel sent distress signals after the hit; maritime sources said the engine room caught fire and filled with smoke, but the crew was safe. A second vessel was reportedly struck as well, though its identity has not been fully confirmed.

Iran has not issued a formal claim of responsibility, but its state broadcaster said the tanker was attacked after trying to use the Omani route with U.S. Navy support and “ignoring repeated warnings.” That is the point of the escalation, Tehran is trying to turn international passage through Hormuz into a permission system controlled by the regime. Days before the strike, Iran’s joint military command warned tankers to use Iran-approved routes or face a “forceful response.”

The attack threatens to blow up the fragile maritime pause reached under the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding, which was supposed to halt attacks around the strait and create space for negotiations. The Strait of Hormuz sits between Iran and Oman and carried roughly a fifth of global oil shipments before the conflict, making every missile fired there a direct threat not only to Gulf shipping but to global energy markets.

The timing is especially volatile. Indirect U.S.-Iran talks in Doha ended without clear progress on Hormuz, while Iran’s foreign minister is now warning that final talks will not begin if U.S. threats continue. President Trump has said Washington will either reach a deal with Tehran or “finish the job,” and the latest strike puts immediate pressure back on the U.S. and its partners to decide whether Iran pays a price for reopening fire on commercial shipping.