--- title: "US strikes Iran for a fourth day as Trump reinstates the Hormuz blockade" description: "The United States struck Iran again early Tuesday, a fourth straight day of attacks, as President Trump reinstated a naval blockade of Iranian ports and vowed to hit Iran 'very hard.' The escalation followed a missile attack on two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz that killed one mariner." category: "World" category_url: https://herald.la/category/world author: "Elias Rosen" published: 2026-07-15T04:56:00.000Z updated: 2026-07-15T04:56:00.000Z canonical: https://herald.la/article/us-strikes-iran-for-a-fourth-day-as-trump-reinstates-the-hormuz-blockade tags: ["iran", "united states", "strait of hormuz", "trump", "middle east"] --- # US strikes Iran for a fourth day as Trump reinstates the Hormuz blockade The United States struck Iran again early Tuesday, a fourth straight day of attacks, as President Trump reinstated a naval blockade of Iranian ports and vowed to hit Iran 'very hard.' The escalation followed a missile attack on two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz that killed one mariner. The conflict between the United States and Iran escalated sharply this week, with American forces striking Iranian targets for a fourth consecutive day and President Trump reimposing a naval blockade of Iran's ports. The renewed fighting has centered on the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which much of the world's oil moves. ## A fourth day of strikes The United States [launched fresh strikes on Iran early Tuesday, July 14](https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/world/live-news/iran-war-trump), hours after Trump said Washington was reinstating its blockade in the strait. U.S. Central Command said the [naval blockade of ships traveling to and from Iranian ports resumed at 4 p.m. Eastern time](https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/world/live-news/iran-war-trump). The strikes were the fourth straight day of attacks since the collapse of a memorandum of understanding that had briefly paused the conflict. Trump left no doubt about his intentions. ["We're going to hit them very hard tonight, and we're going to hit them hard tomorrow,"](https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/us-iran-war-trump-ceasefire-talks-strait-of-hormuz/) he said in an interview, adding that the strikes would "continue until I say it's enough." ## The trigger: a tanker attack The latest round followed a deadly strike at sea. The United Arab Emirates' Defense Ministry said [Iran launched cruise missiles at two tankers, the Mombasa and the Al Bahiyah, in the Strait of Hormuz, killing one mariner and wounding eight others](https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/us-iran-war-trump-ceasefire-talks-strait-of-hormuz/). Iran, in turn, said it had carried out attacks on targets associated with U.S. and allied forces in the Gulf, with reports of Iranian strikes aimed at Bahrain and Jordan. Iran has not released comprehensive casualty figures from the American strikes, and several competing claims from both sides could not be independently verified. ## A shift on tolls Trump also changed course on one of his earlier threats. Having floated charging ships a fee to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, he [said the United States would drop the proposed 20% cargo toll](https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/us-iran-war-trump-ceasefire-talks-strait-of-hormuz/), framing it instead around investment commitments from Gulf states into the U.S. economy. The blockade, rather than a toll, is now the central instrument of American pressure. ## Why it matters far from the Gulf The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important oil chokepoints, and a blockade plus active fighting around it ripples quickly through the global economy. Shipping through the strait has fallen sharply as vessels avoid the danger, pushing up oil prices, a dynamic that reaches all the way to California, where drivers already pay the nation's second-highest gasoline prices. The risk of a sustained disruption is exactly what markets have been bracing against. ## What comes next Mediators including Oman, Qatar and Pakistan have tried to broker a return to talks, but no breakthrough has been announced, and the core dispute, over control of the strait and the terms for passage through it, remains unresolved. With Trump vowing to keep striking and Iran vowing to respond, the conflict appears, for now, to be widening rather than winding down. This is a developing story; figures and claims reflect what officials and news organizations had reported as of Tuesday evening. ## Sources - [July 14, 2026 — US naval blockade of Iranian ports goes into effect](https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/world/live-news/iran-war-trump) - [The US strikes Iran after Trump announces a renewed blockade and tolls in Hormuz](https://www.npr.org/2026/07/13/nx-s1-5891746/us-iran-strait-of-hormuz-updates) - [Trump orders new round of strikes to 'hold Iranian forces accountable,' CENTCOM says](https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/us-iran-war-trump-ceasefire-talks-strait-of-hormuz/)