UAE Condemns Iran's Ship Attacks as US Launches Fresh Strikes

UAE strongly condemns a deadly Iranian cruise missile strike on two tankers as the US launches fresh retaliatory strikes in the Strait of Hormuz.

A dangerous escalation has erupted in one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes, the Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, July 13, 2026, two United Arab Emirates (UAE) oil tankers, the Mombasa and the Al Bahiyah, were hit by Iranian cruise missiles. The unprovoked attack took place within Omani territorial waters as the vessels sailed through the strait’s southern shipping lane. The strike killed an Indian crew member aboard the Mombasa and injured eight other sailors, six of whom are Indian and two of whom are Ukrainian. The attack also caused significant fires and material damage to both vessels before emergency crews successfully brought the flames under control.

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the hostile strikes, calling them a “brazen” violation of international law. UAE authorities warned that targeting commercial ships and using key international waterways for economic blackmail acts as piracy and severely threatens global energy security. According to reports from BBC News and CitiNewsroom, this missile attack is part of a rapidly widening conflict over who controls the Strait of Hormuz.

In direct response to the rising violence, the United States military launched fresh airstrikes against Iranian targets on Monday evening. US Central Command (Centcom) confirmed that military jets hit several offensive Iranian targets to damage their ability to attack commercial shipping. This marks the third consecutive night of US airstrikes on Iran, following a formal notification from US President Donald Trump to Congress that military action had resumed on July 7. Centcom stated that the US military will continue to secure the region and protect vessels using international waters.

The situation has grown even more complex with the announcement of a new US economic strategy. President Trump announced that the United States is establishing a naval blockade of Iranian ports starting Tuesday, July 14, 2026. Under this new directive, the US will impose a 20% security charge on all commercial cargo moving through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump declared that the US would act as the “Guardian of the Hormuz Strait,” and the 20% toll would cover the expensive military costs of keeping the volatile route safe. While the blockade restricts Iranian vessels, the US insists other international trade ships will still have fair and open access.

Iran has reacted defiantly to the US blockade and the military strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected the legality of a mandatory toll on international transit but asserted that Tehran remains the true “guardian” of the strait. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed they targeted the UAE tankers because the vessels ignored safety warnings, turned off their tracking systems, and sailed into a mined zone. Iran’s military headquarters additionally warned that any country cooperating with US forces in the strait would be viewed as committing an act of war, threatening to drag the entire Middle East into a wider conflict.