The image is almost cinematic in the wrong way: a long line of cars baking in the desert heat outside a gas station in Iranshahr, Iran, waiting for fuel in a country that sits atop some of the world’s largest oil reserves.
On July 7 and 8, 2026, US forces launched strikes against Iranian military installations across southern Iran, hitting locations including Sirik, Bandar Abbas, and Qeshm Island. Iranian media reported multiple explosions in these port cities as US forces targeted air defense systems and missile installations. The strikes came in direct response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
Why the Strait of Hormuz makes everyone nervous
Roughly 20% of all global oil shipments pass through this narrow waterway between Iran and Oman. There is no realistic detour.
Oil markets moved immediately. Analysts noted upward pressure on crude prices as traders priced in the possibility that the world’s most trafficked energy corridor could become a genuine conflict zone.
