U.S. launches additional strikes on Iran ahead of restoring blockade, official says

By — Jon Gambrell, Associated Press Jon Gambrell, Associated Press By — Collin Binkley, Associated Press Collin Binkley, Associated Press By — Josh Boak, Associated Press Josh Boak, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/u-s-launches-additional-strikes-on-iran-ahead-of-restoring-blockade-official-says Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter U.S. launches additional strikes on Iran ahead of restoring blockade, official says World Jul 14, 2026 3:29 PM EDT DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday backtracked on plans to charge ships for using the Strait of Hormuz, saying Gulf countries would instead invest in the United States. Another wave of U.S. strikes on Iran, and Iranian attacks on shipping and American allies, left an interim peace deal in tatters. READ MORE: Why it's so difficult for the U.S. to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz That agreement was supposed to reopen a waterway that is key to world energy supplies and give negotiators time to hammer out a permanent end to the war. Instead, fighting has once again engulfed the region, threatened the global economy and brought warnings to commercial airlines. The U.S. carried out another wave of strikes ahead of its planned reimposition of a blockade on Iran's ports, a U.S. official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive military operation. A fifth of all traded crude oil and natural gas passed through the Strait of Hormuz before the war, when it was open to all without tolls. When the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, it effectively shut the passage by attacking and threatening ships — a tactic that proved its greatest strategic advantage. That sent the price of oil, fertilizer and other goods soaring. Iran has more recently attacked ships moving through the strait on a route overseen by the U.S. military that is outside Tehran's control, setting off tit-for-tat strikes. The U.S. has threatened to reopen the strait by force — but experts say that would require a much bigger armada if not tens of thousands of ground troops. Trump says he's replacing the fees with Gulf investments On Monday, Trump said the U.S. would reimpose a blockade on Iranian ports and begin charging ships fees equivalent to 20% of their cargo to defray the costs of securing the strait. He backed off on the fees a day later, while the blockade is set to come back into force in the coming hours. Trump said he was called by "kings and emirs" and other leaders who suggested an alternate arrangement. "They said we'd love to do it a different way. We'd love to invest in the United States with billions and billions of dollars," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday. Trump said he preferred that arrangement to charging tolls "because I don't think anybody should be able to charge a fee for the strait." It was unclear if the investment deals would be ne