During the 2026 Iran War the Persian Gulf became a major zone of military and economic disruption. After joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28, 2026, Iran retaliated with missile, drone, and maritime attacks on U.S. bases, energy infrastructure, and commercial shipping in the gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, the gulf’s only outlet to the open ocean. Iranian threats to mine or block the strait and attacks on vessels sharply reduced tanker traffic through the vital shipping route, disrupting a passage that carries more than 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
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