US tightens Hormuz protection as Iran targets night shipping

WASHINGTON, Sept 12: : The United States has restricted military protection for tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz to two designated daily time windows after Iran stepped up attacks on ships travelling through the strategic waterway at night, the Financial Times reported Saturday.

Washington has been providing air-based protection since May to commercial vessels using a route along the Omani coast on the southern side of the strait.

However, the protection arrangement was reduced to two daily time slots around the beginning of September, according to the Financial Times, which cited emails sent by a US naval coordination center to maritime advisers.

The move comes amid heightened risks to commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy route where military tensions have increasingly disrupted maritime traffic.

The US protection is intended to help tankers navigate the designated route while reducing their exposure to attacks during the ongoing regional conflict.