The U.S. military has intercepted at least three Iranian-flagged tankers in Asian waters and is redirecting them away from their positions near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping ?and security sources said on Wednesday.
Washington has imposed a blockade on Iran's trade by sea while Iran has fired ?on ships ?to prevent them sailing through the Strait of Hormuz waterway at the entrance to ?the Middle East Gulf. Nearly two months after the U.S. and Israel began their war on Iran, there is little sign of peace talks resuming during an uneasy ceasefire.
The closure of the strait has disrupted the shipping of a fifth ?of the world's oil and gas supplies, causing a global energy crisis. U.S. forces have seized an Iranian cargo ship and ?an oil tanker in recent days. Iran said it had captured two container ships seeking to exit the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday after firing on them and another vessel, its ?first seizures since the war began.
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