U.S. Disables Oil Tanker Heading to Kharg Island Under Renewed Blockade

U.S. Central Command disabled the Curacao-flagged oil tanker M/T Belma in the Arabian Gulf on July 15 as it headed toward Kharg Island. The vessel ignored multiple warnings before a U.S. aircraft fired Hellfire missiles into its smokestack, leaving it unable to continue to Iran.

The M/T Belma was the first vessel disabled by U.S. forces since President Trump reinstated the naval blockade of Iranian ports on July 14.

U.S. forces also conducted strikes on July 15 against command centers, air defense sites, missile and drone capabilities, and coastal surveillance facilities across Iran, including Bandar Abbas. A separate 90-minute wave hit coastal defense and cruise missile sites on Greater Tunb Island.

Iran responded with missile and drone attacks targeting U.S. bases and facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Kuwait’s military intercepted drone attacks and detected four cruise missiles and 21 drones.

Bahrain’s interior ministry reported air raid sirens and urged residents to remain calm. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps stated on July 16 that it struck a U.S. air base in Jordan with ballistic missiles in response to an alleged U.S.

Attack near a children’s cancer hospital in Iran. Iranian state media reported explosions audible near Bandar Abbas. -Iran dual citizen Dena Karari departed Iran on or before July 15 after an exit ban imposed in December 2024.

She suffered a heart attack on July 8 while under the ban. President Trump stated on Truth Social that Iran had released a U.S. citizen who is now safely outside the country. ” Vice President JD Vance said in a July 15 interview that the administration is engaged in a “delicate diplomatic dance” with Iran amid tensions between Iranian hardliners and pragmatists.