Key Facts

• The US Central Command (Centcom) reported that the oil tanker Belma was struck after it "ignored multiple warnings" and was heading towards the Kharg Island oil terminal, with an aircraft disabling the tanker by "firing Hellfire missiles into the ship's smokestack".
• President Donald Trump reintroduced a blockade of Iranian ports on Tuesday, in response to a series of alleged Iranian attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and days of tit-for-tat strikes by the US and Iran.
• The US had previously declared a ceasefire "over" following days of escalating attacks, and a naval blockade on ships going to or from Iranian ports was in place between 13 April and 18 June, during which time the US redirected more than 140 vessels and disabled nine ships.
• Experts estimate that Tehran exported at least 74 million barrels of oil, worth up to $6bn (£4.4bn), between the end of the blockade and its resumption, with Iran selling oil at prices roughly 20% higher than before the war, according to its chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.
• Crossings through the critical Strait of Hormuz have fallen over the last week and remain far below the pre-conflict average of 138 per day, with only 11 fuel tankers and cargo vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, according to preliminary data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler.