US fires on another ship trying to breach Iran blockade

The U.S. military said Friday it fired on another merchant ship—the M/T Lavine—in the Gulf of Oman after the vessel tried at least four times to breach its blockade of Iranian ports. After warnings went unheeded, forces fired into the engine room. It is the second commercial ship disabled since the blockade was reimposed.

Key Takeaways

• U.S. forces disabled the M/T Lavine after it tried to run the Iran ports blockade at least four times.
• Capt. Tim Hawkins of U.S. Central Command said the crew was warned, did not comply, and was fired on in the engine room.
• It is the second commercial ship disabled since the blockade was reimposed; CENTCOM also said it has redirected 12 vessels.
• Fighting around the Strait of Hormuz has pushed Brent crude near $96 a barrel and U.S. pump prices to about $4.11 a gallon.
• Thousands of mariners remain stranded as diplomacy shows no clear breakthrough.

For readers tracking energy costs, shipping risk, and how geopolitical shocks hit wallets and portfolios, see more coverage in our Wealth Hacks & Passive Income hub.

According to reporting by The Associated Press, the incident unfolded as the U.S. and Iran showed little sign of stepping back after a 13th straight night of strikes. American embassies in the Middle East began warning that exit options could tighten, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard advised residents of neighboring countries to stay away from bases hosting U.S. troops.

What happened to the merchant ship near Iran?

American forces disabled the M/T Lavine in the Gulf of Oman on Friday, Capt. Tim Hawkins, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, told the AP. He said the ship attempted to run the blockade of Iranian ports at least four times.

Hawkins stressed that the ship’s crew was warned and did not comply with commands. U.S. forces then fired into the vessel’s engine room. Spectrum News, citing the same CENTCOM account, reported that it is the second commercial ship disabled since the military reimposed its blockade and that U.S. Central Command said it also has redirected 12 vessels.

BBC reporting carried by Yahoo News quoted Hawkins telling AFP that the crew was “repeatedly warned,” that forces disabled the tanker after firing into its engine room, and that “the ship is no longer transiting to Iran.” The same account said the vessel was the second commercial ship the U.S. has disabled since reimposing the blockade earlier this month.

Why does this ship clash matter for oil and money?

At the center of the fight is the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for world energy supplies that Iranian attacks have effectively shut down, the AP reported. That disruption has sent fuel prices soaring and caused widespread economic turmoil—exactly the kind of shock that can squeeze household budgets and scramble income plans tied to energy, travel, and shipping-linked markets.

In peacetime, about one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas moved through the strait, according to U.S. Central Command’s framing of its campaign goals as reported by the AP. Brent crude dipped slightly Friday to about $96 a barrel, still well above roughly $72 before the war. AAA said U.S. motorists saw average gas prices rise to about $4.11 a gallon.

Yahoo’s BBC report noted growing concern over Houthi threats in the Red Sea helped push crude back over $100 earlier in the week—the highest since May—before Brent futures fell more than $4 on Friday to a little over $96 after two Chinese-chartered supertankers successfully passed Bab el-Mandeb, according to Reuters as cited in that coverage.

U.S. Central Command said its latest barrage was meant to “further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters” as Washington pushes to reopen the strait.

How are regional attacks widening the shipping crisis?

Iran-backed Houthi forces targeted Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, raising risks on another vital Middle Eastern oil route and making good on threats to close Bab el-Mandeb to Saudi-linked shipping, the AP reported. Around 12% of world trade, including about one-fourth of global container traffic, passes through that passage.

Saudi Arabia struck the Yemeni port city of Hodeida in response, the Saudi-led coalition said early Saturday. Yahoo’s BBC report said the Houthis later claimed a missile attack that caused fires in Saudi Arabia’s Jizan area after Riyadh’s strikes on Hodeida and nearby Kamaran Island. President Donald Trump has threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthis if attacks on ships continue, the AP said.

The International Maritime Organization said at least 6,000 mariners were stranded on about 400 vessels around the Strait of Hormuz. The office of U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk said some seafarers have been abandoned by ship owners and left without food, water, fuel, medical care, electricity, or ways to contact their families.

Is there any diplomatic off-ramp yet?

There have been no public signs of negotiation progress, the AP reported. An Omani mediation delegation was in Tehran on Friday to discuss managing shipping traffic in the strait, according to Iranian state media. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran “will not bow to U.S.” bullying and is “neither intimidated by threats nor will we yield to pressure,” while noting talks with China and Russia.

In the Oval Office, Trump called talks with Iran “by far the most serious that we’ve seen,” even as daily U.S. strikes continued, and said he is “not in a hurry” to end the war. A U.S. official said Trump met top national security aides Friday on whether to hold course or escalate; no decisions were immediately clear. Yahoo’s BBC coverage quoted Trump saying negotiators seemed serious, but that “doesn’t mean we get there,” while adding the U.S. was “locked and loaded.”

Iran’s Health Ministry reported 3,434 people killed since the war began. Security officials in Irbil said U.S.-led forces shot down five explosives-laden drones Friday near an airport hosting American forces. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed strikes on a U.S. base in Udairi, Kuwait, and a Fifth Fleet watchtower in Bahrain; CENTCOM did not respond to those claims. Bahrain and Jordan said they intercepted Iranian aerial attacks.

Bottom line: another disabled merchant ship underscores how quickly blockade enforcement, Hormuz closures, and Red Sea threats can ripple into oil prices, gas bills, and global trade—stakes that matter well beyond the Gulf.