US President Donald Trump said he has demanded that about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open as Iran continues to strike Gulf countries today. President Trump, in a social media post, said the US is negotiating with countries heavily reliant on West Asia crude to join a coalition to police the waterway where about one-fifth of the world’s traded oil normally flows.
The European Union has said it is weighing two types of naval missions to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The EU’s Foreign Policy Chief, Kaja Kallas, said it is in their interest to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, and the EU is discussing what they can do in this regard. She made the announcement ahead of a gathering of the bloc’s foreign ministers in Brussels today. She said rising prices for energy and fertilisers have brought the war in Iran to the top of their agenda. Ms Kallas said the EU can expand its Aspides naval mission to protect shipping in the Red Sea up into the Persian Gulf or form a coalition of the willing with member nations contributing military capacity on an ad hoc basis.
Meanwhile, Japan, Australia and the UK said they have no plans to send ships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz.
On the other hand, the world’s busiest airport, Dubai International Airport, gradually restarted operations after a drone struck a fuel tank and started a fire. Authorities said it was quickly contained, and no injuries were reported. The Dubai Civil Aviation Authority advised passengers to check with their airlines for the latest updates regarding their flights, as operations were gradually restored following the incident.
Tehran has accused the United States of using ports, docks and hideouts in the United Arab Emirates to launch strikes on Kharg Island, which is home to the main terminal handling Iran’s oil exports, as oil prices soared. Brent crude oil was trading near 105 US dollars per barrel today.
Bahrain’s Defence Ministry said air defence systems responded to attacks this morning. The Ministry said four missiles and three drones were fired.
Israeli strikes have deepened Lebanon’s humanitarian crisis, with more than 850 people killed and over eight hundred thousand displaced. The Israeli military has said it sent additional ground troops into Lebanon for a limited and targeted operation. Military spokesman Lt Col Nadav Shoshani said the latest deployment is meant to defend Israeli border communities against attacks from the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah. Lebanon’s state-run news agency claimed that one person was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a home in the village of Kfar Sir this morning.
