US launches new round of strikes against Iran as escalation threatens shipping

“END OF AMERICA’S EVILS”

The war, which began with US and Israeli strikes against Iran on Feb 28, triggered Iranian attacks on Gulf states that host US bases and caused major disruption to global energy supplies, raising fears of a surge in inflation.

Oil prices extended gains by about 1 per cent on Wednesday, after settling on Tuesday at a new one-month high.

An interim ceasefire deal in the conflict signed last month was meant to lead to further negotiations, including on Iran’s nuclear programme, and to a permanent truce, but a return to talks has faltered.

Analysts say that while the US and Iran have gone back to sparring as they did before the interim ceasefire deal was signed, they are unlikely to return to full-scale war, though a risk of further escalation remains.

They say Iran is signalling it may use its Houthi allies in Yemen to shut Bab el-Mandeb, opening a new front against Washington and putting two of the world’s most vital energy arteries at risk.

As a result of the war, Iran has been trying to assert permanent control over shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and to impose fees on vessels passing through it, in what would be a major shift of the balance of power in a region where the US has long acted as guarantor of security.

The IRGC said on Wednesday that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until what it described as “the end of America’s evils”.

Shipping data showed an uptick in Iran-linked ships passing through the strait before a new US blockade on Iranian ports took effect.

Bab el-Mandeb links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, through which Saudi oil exports and a substantial share of global shipping pass.