Another Tanker Hit in Strait of Hormuz as US Strikes Iran for Tenth Straight Night

A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz roughly eight nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman, in Omani territorial waters, with the incident reported Monday, July 20, as US forces carried out strikes against Iran for a tenth consecutive night [1]. The Pentagon says nearly 100 US service members have suffered injuries, mostly minor concussions, since the exchange of strikes began on July 7, with 96% of those troops having already returned to duty [2]. President Trump warned Tehran of further escalation before ordering the latest wave of strikes on Monday, continuing a campaign that has also seen Iran hit tankers, including vessels flagged to the United Arab Emirates, elsewhere in the strait earlier this month [3].

Why It Sucks:

Conservatives

• Deterrence requires following through. Supporters of the strikes argue that after Iranian attacks injured nearly 100 US troops, failing to respond forcefully would only invite further attacks on American forces and allied shipping [2].
• Keeping the strait open matters more than optics. They argue that tanker attacks threaten a chokepoint for global oil supply, and sustained US pressure on Iran is necessary to protect commercial shipping lanes regardless of how the campaign looks politically [1].
• Restraint would be read as weakness. Backing the president’s approach, they contend that ten nights of strikes signal resolve that critics of prolonged engagement underestimate the cost of abandoning [3].

Progressives

• An undeclared war keeps expanding. Critics argue that ten consecutive nights of strikes without a formal congressional declaration of war raises serious constitutional concerns about executive war powers [3].
• Troops are absorbing the cost of escalation. With nearly 100 service members already injured since July 7, opponents say the human toll on rank-and-file troops is mounting in a conflict many Americans never explicitly voted to enter [2].
• There’s no clear endpoint. They warn that continued strikes with no defined objective or exit strategy risk dragging the US into a prolonged regional war with unpredictable consequences [1, 3].

Gulf Shipping Industry and Regional States

• Vessels in neutral waters are getting hit. The tanker struck near Limah was in Omani territorial waters, not a combatant’s, underscoring how commercial shipping and neutral states are absorbing collateral damage from a fight that isn’t theirs [1].
• Insurance and trade costs are climbing. Shipping operators and Gulf economies dependent on tanker traffic face rising insurance premiums and rerouting costs the longer strikes and retaliatory attacks continue in the strait [1].
• Smaller Gulf states have no say in the escalation. Nations like Oman and the UAE are bearing the physical risk of tanker strikes on their doorstep despite having no direct role in the US-Iran exchange driving the conflict [1, 3].

Sources & Citations:

[1] Washington Post: Another tanker attacked in Strait of Hormuz as US strikes Iran for 10th consecutive night
[2] Anadolu Agency: Morning Briefing, July 21, 2026
[3] CNN: US completes more strikes against Iran after Trump warning to Tehran