A tanker sailing off Qatar’s northern coast was struck by multiple projectiles in the Gulf, about 500km west of the Strait of Hormuz. A British maritime security agency said the attack caused an unknown number of casualties and did not identify the vessel’s flag or origin.
The attack came as Iran said it would close a route being used to bypass its blockade of shipping through the strait, which has effectively been closed since 28 February. On Tuesday, India said 12 crew members were injured in a separate attack on a Panama-flagged oil tanker transiting the waterway.
At least 12 attacks on oil, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas tankers were recorded around the strait in the week ending 5 October, the highest weekly level since the war began. Oil prices rose above $100 a barrel as the attacks intensified.
The Strait of Hormuz carried about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war. On Thursday, the US president said he would not attack Iran before the midterm elections, while maintaining that the blockade would remain in force and claiming that 22 million barrels had moved through the strait the previous night without originating in or going to Iran.