Attacks on oil ships in the Middle East are now worse than at any point since the Iran war began. Ships are being hit in three different places at once: the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow strip of water between Iran and Oman. Before the war, about 20% of all the world's oil and gas traveled through it. Ship-tracking company Kpler says that on a recent Sunday, only eight ships passed through. The Saturday before, only eleven did. Before the fighting started, more than 100 ships passed through every day. Kpler analyst Matthew Wright says the danger to oil shipping is at its worst since the Iran crisis began BBC.

The shipping crisis has followed the ups and downs of diplomacy. A temporary peace deal between Iran and the United States in early June brought traffic back to Hormuz for a short time. When fighting started again about a month later, traffic dropped again. Many ships have turned off their tracking devices — the equipment that shows where a ship is — to avoid being spotted. This is called "going dark." During much of the war, some Saudi oil ships used a different route through the Red Sea. But fighters in Yemen called Houthis have attacked Saudi tankers on that route too.

Iran has denied US President Donald Trump's claim that Iran is talking to Washington about reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iran says it is talking to Oman instead BBC. In May 2026, Iran warned that if its ships were attacked, it would launch a heavy attack on an American site in the region and on enemy ships The Guardian. The United States took away a license that let Iran sell oil after three tankers were hit Reuters.

The attacks have picked up across several narrow waterways. The UK Maritime Trade Operations office said a tanker was hit on its side while traveling south in the Strait of Hormuz Al Jazeera. A drone also struck a ship carrying liquefied natural gas in Hormuz. Iranian cruise missiles hit two oil tankers from the United Arab Emirates, the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah, while they sailed through Omani waters Reuters. By July 14, 2026, Iran had attacked three or more ships in Hormuz within 24 hours, showing it can keep disrupting shipping ISW.

The UK maritime office has issued a steady stream of warnings. One dated July 14 said a tanker was hit by a missile. Two warnings published on August 1 reported separate attacks on tankers near Oman. Another advisory on August 2 said a gas tanker was struck but caused no environmental damage.

The danger has spread beyond the Persian Gulf. Attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait are disrupting ships in both the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea NYT. Two tankers carrying Saudi oil crossed the Bab el-Mandeb strait on the weekend of August 1-2, even as Hormuz traffic slowed Reuters. Egypt said a drone started a fire on two gas ships at the Mediterranean port of Damietta Reuters. That strike created a new threat to ships using the Suez Canal Reuters.

The broader picture is that the attacks across all three waterways — Hormuz, Bab al-Mandeb, and the Suez Canal area — appear aimed at cutting off every alternative route. When the Red Sea route came under attack, the Mediterranean port was hit too. Ships now face two bad choices: sail through dangerous waters with their trackers off, or take a long detour that takes oil off the world market. Iran's talks with Oman while rejecting Trump's claims suggest Tehran may be applying pressure to gain concessions rather than trying to shut the waterway entirely. But the US revoking Iran's oil license makes another peace deal like the one in June harder to reach. With only single-digit ship traffic in Hormuz and three danger zones active at once, there is almost no room for error in keeping oil flowing.