Iran on Wednesday captured two foreign container ships seeking to exit the Strait of Hormuz and fired at a third one, marking the latest escalation of tensions between Washington and Tehran in the narrow shipping passage, and coming amid a United States naval blockade of Iranian ports which commenced on April 13.On Monday this week, the US military fired on and then captured the Iranian-flagged container ship Touska close to the Strait of Hormuz in the northern Arabian Sea, as it was en route to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. In response, Iran accused the US of “piracy“.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listThen, on Wednesday, the US military intercepted at least three Iranian-flagged tankers in Asian waters, the Reuters news agency reported, and was said to be redirecting them away from their positions near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.While a ceasefire between the US and Iran is in place, the attacks, capture, and interceptions of ships by both sides point to an ongoing naval war still playing out in the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies are shipped during peacetime.Has Iran’s capture of foreign-flagged ships raised the stakes in the strait even more?Here’s what we know about how Iran and the US have, step by step, ratcheted up tensions in the strait.Who controls the Strait of Hormuz?The Strait of Hormuz runs between Oman on one side and Iran on the other. It links the Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea beyond. Oil and gas producers in the Gulf use the channel to s …
