TIMELINE: 10 WEEKS OF RISING TENSION
May 12
Four commercial tankers are attacked in the Gulf of Oman. Two Saudi, one Norwegian and an Emirati-registered ship are damaged in the incident, which the US quickly blames on Iran. Tehran denies involvement and an international investigation is quickly launched.
June 13
The Japanese Kokuka Courageous and the Norwegian Front Altair are damaged by limpet mines. The US again blames Iran and releases footage it says shows Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps removing an object from the side of one of the ships after the initial explosions.
June 17
The US says Iran shot down an American Reaper drone during the Gulf of Oman incident.
July 4
British Marines seize Iranian-owned, Panama-flagged Grace 1 off Gibraltar, saying the vessel was transporting oil to Syria in contravention of EU sanctions. Tehran demands the return of the ship and warns of repercussions.
July 11
A British naval frigate warned off three Iranian vessels after they attempted to stop and divert an oil tanker from its passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
July 13
Panama-flagged Riah shuts off tracking systems and goes dark. Last seen heading from the Strait of Hormuz towards Iranian waters.
July 16
US military general says he fears Tehran has seized the
Riah. Meanwhile, Emirati officials say the ship is neither owned nor operated by the UAE and has no Emirati nationals aboard. UAE officials also said they received no distress signal when the ship went missing.
July 17
Tehran says it towed the Riah to harbour for repairs after receiving a distress signal.
July 19
Hours after the White House says it shot down an Iranian drone over the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seizes the Swedishowned, British-flagged tanker Stena Impero.
July 20
The UK demands the return of Stena Impero. British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt speaks to his Iranian counterpart, Javad Zarif, to express disappointment at the move because Iran had earlier said it wanted to de-escalate the situation.