Jenny Gross

The ships were hit near Oman on Monday, the latest attacks on vessels in the Persian Gulf. Oil prices rose more than 2 percent.

At least 17 commercial sailors have been killed in and around Iranian and Omani waters since March. Six months into the conflict, the vital waterway remains exceptionally dangerous.

Thousands of civilian workers remain stranded on ships at risk of attack by Iran. On one vessel, sailors have been held by the Iranian navy for more than three months.

Attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait are disrupting the passage of oil tankers in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.

Dozens of ships continued to traverse the Red Sea this week, but with scattered disruption, uncertainty about the passage grows by the hour.

With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed, the militant group’s threats in the Red Sea jeopardize Saudi Arabia’s main workaround for oil exports.

Shipping traffic was at its lowest level in more than a month and oil prices moved higher as the Iran war continued to disrupt the supply of energy.

The president now wants Gulf nations to invest in the U.S. in exchange for safe passage. Shipping industry experts worry other nations will follow that lead.

Shipping activity plummeted after Iran attacked a ship, setting off U.S. strikes. Little crude oil is being transported through the critical waterway.

Companies desperately want to get their ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz, but face mounting risks. “Things are becoming uglier by the minute,” one executive said.

Attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a new cycle of retaliation that could throttle the flow of energy from the region.

A recovery in oil flows from the Persian Gulf and a pledge by OPEC Plus to pump more crude have put downward pressure on energy prices.

The Strait of Malacca may be a model for how Oman and Iran could collect fees in the Strait of Hormuz, but the differences between the waterways are vast.

Vessels stranded for months have started moving in larger numbers, but many pulled back over the weekend after Iran and the U.S. exchanged attacks.

The attacks came after traffic through the Strait of Hormuz had reached the highest levels since the start of the U.S. war in Iran.

The new warning complicated efforts to revive use of the critical waterway as Washington sought regional support for its framework peace agreement with Iran.

Shipping companies had hoped to get their stranded vessels out, but faced uncertainty as violence flared again in the region.

With the United States and Iran nearing a deal to reopen the Persian Gulf, the mega shipping firm is treading cautiously.

With more than 500 ships still stranded in the Persian Gulf, pressure on the shipowners and sailors is growing by the day.