Two oil tankers struck by unidentified projectiles in Strait of Hormuz

Two oil tankers have been struck by "unidentified projectiles" in the Strait of Hormuz region, a British maritime agency said Friday, in the latest threat to shipping in the waterway.

The Hormuz passage, through which a fifth of the world's oil and LNG passed before the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran in late February and sparked the Middle East war, remains at the heart of the conflict.

Tehran has been blocking the passage of commercial ships, firing on vessels it accuses of unauthorised crossings.

Washington responded with a counterblockade of Iranian ports in an effort to prevent Tehran from exporting its oil.

The first attack caused "a small fire and blackout onboard", the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said Friday, adding that the fire was later extinguished.

The vessel, which was exiting the strait, was able to resume its journey, UKMTO said, without specifying the ship's ports of origin and destination.