Projectile hits LNG tanker at entrance to Strait of Hormuz

What happened

• UKMTO logged the first report on Saturday, 1 August: a tanker hit 11 nautical miles northeast of Oman's Lima.
• The vessel reported engine room damage and declared itself not under command; no casualties and no environmental impact.
• A second master, 21 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, reported a large splash and an explosion, but no damage.
• Bloomberg reports the struck tanker was carrying Qatari LNG. UKMTO did not identify who fired.
• Lima and Khasab lie on Oman's Musandam Peninsula; about a fifth of global oil consumption passes the strait.

The view from outside

Reuters, carried by Hong Kong's South China Morning Post, describes the two incidents without naming any attacker, while Bloomberg foregrounds the cargo, Qatari LNG in transit through the chokepoint.

What could happen next

• No party has claimed the strikes, and no source attributes the projectile to a state or group.
• Unclear whether the disabled tanker can be towed and what happens to its LNG cargo.
• Operators and insurers must decide whether to keep transiting after a further day of reported strikes.
• Crews stranded since Friday's reported strikes on two US-escorted tankers are still not released.