The China Mail - Iran steps up attacks in return to war with US

Iran's Yemeni allies, the Houthis, declared they would blockade Saudi Arabia's ports, in what would throw the world's energy markets into further chaos after the Islamic republic blockaded the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards meanwhile said they had attacked and stopped two "non-compliant oil tankers" attempting to transit Hormuz, which Tehran has blockaded to avenge the US-Israeli attack that kickstarted the war on February 28.

It remains unclear how the Houthis would implement their blockade of Saudi ports, and oil markets eased slightly despite the threat from Iran's ally against the world's biggest crude exporter.

"The siren has been sounded, Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place," Bahrain's interior ministry said after the military reported it had intercepted Iranian attacks.

Jordan's military also reported intercepting five Iranian drones, followed by three missiles, in two waves of strikes that caused no casualties or damage.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed the first of the attacks, claiming in a statement that they had targeted a "complex housing US terrorist forces in the region of Rukban".

The Iranian army had earlier said it targeted US assets in Kuwait and Bahrain, including air defence systems, radar installations and administrative buildings.

"With this radar sweep, the enemy should prepare for even more decisive and powerful waves of drone and missile attacks," the Guards said in a statement carried by state news agency IRNA.

Following the deaths of at least three US soldiers in the past several days, the United States launched a new round of attacks against Iran on Monday which it said were "designed to further degrade Iranian military capabilities used to attack commercial shipping" in the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump warned that Iran would pay "many times over" for every American soldier killed, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the conflict had become "a full-scale war".

Nearly 100 US service members have been wounded since war resumed on July 7, the Pentagon said on Monday, most with minor concussion.

- Houthi threat -

Should the Houthis make good on their threat to blockade Saudi Arabia's ports, that would put at risk Riyadh's ability to bypass Hormuz for some of its oil exports and have major repercussions for the global economy.

Saudi Arabia and the Houthis traded fire last week for the first time in years, threatening a 2022 truce in their years-long conflict, but the rebels have largely remained on the sidelines since Israel and the United States attacked Iran in late February.

Saudi Arabia strongly condemned the threat from what it called the "terrorist Houthi militia" and said it "continues to support the brotherly Yemeni people and their legitimate government".

The Middle East war resumed after an April ceasefire and a June framework deal collapsed.

Tehran reimposed its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and Washington hit back by again blockading Iran's ports.

Oil prices surged briefly to a one-month high Monday before easing slightly early Tuesday as the foes battle to control the strait, through which a fifth of world oil travelled in peacetime.

Although far below its prewar totals, Saudi Arabia has been able to continue exporting millions of barrels of oil a day via its Red Sea port of Yanbu.

Oil markets have for months feared that the Houthis would return to attacking shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden -- as they did during the Gaza war -- potentially cutting off yet more crude from global markets.

- Diplomatic exchanges -

In the Strait of Hormuz, meanwhile, the Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday that two tankers attempting to transit the strait "were hit by explosions, resulting in massive fires that brought them to a standstill".

The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) earlier reported that an "unknown projectile" struck a tanker off the coast of Oman.

On Tuesday, UKMTO reported another tanker off the coast of Oman had been struck by a projectile.

Despite the latest fighting, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said diplomatic exchanges with Washington via mediators were ongoing.

Iran's Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni is in Islamabad for a two-day visit during which he was scheduled to meet with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and powerful army chief Asim Munir, according to Pakistan's interior ministry.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is set to meet with Trump in Washington on Tuesday as pressure builds for Beirut to disarm Hezbollah, Israel's key condition before withdrawing from south Lebanon.

C.Fong--ThChM