This is the most serious single incident in the conflict so far in terms of direct casualties, and the first confirmed use of Iranian cruise missiles against tanker traffic rather than proxy attacks or blockade posturing. Coming hours before the US blockade takes effect and in conjunction with a separate UKMTO warning of a projectile strike nearby, it confirms the southern approaches to the strait, not just the strait itself, are now an active target zone. The UAE's explicit statement that it retains the right to respond raises the prospect of direct UAE Iran confrontation layering onto the existing US Iran conflict, a combination that argues for the risk premium in oil to extend further rather than plateau.---Iran has now hit UAE flagged tankers directly.Summary:The UAE Defence Ministry said two UAE national tankers were targeted by two Iranian cruise missiles in the southern lane of the Strait of Hormuz, in Omani territorial watersOne Indian crew member was killed and eight others wounded, four of them seriouslyFires broke out on both tankers but have since been brought under controlThe UAE condemned the attack as a serious breach of international law and said it retains the full right to respond and take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty and securityUKMTO warning the same evening of a tanker hit by an unknown projectile nearby off Qalhat, OmanIt also comes hours ahead of the US naval blockade of Iran, due to take effect at 2000 GMT, and follows a weekend of US strikes on Iran and Iranian linked attacks on Saudi ArabiaTwo UAE flagged tankers were struck by Iranian cruise missiles in the southern Strait of Hormuz on Monday, the UAE Ministry of Defence said, in an attack that killed one Indian crew member and wounded eight others, four of them seriously. The ministry said the strike occurred in Omani territorial waters, that fires on both vessels have since been brought under control, and that the UAE views the attack as a serious breach of international law. It added that the UAE retains its full right to respond and take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty and security.The attack marks a sharp escalation in a conflict that has spent the past week widening by the day. The UKMTO issued a separate warning that a tanker had been hit by an unknown projectile near Qalhat, Oman, in the same general stretch of the Gulf of Oman, and just hours before the US naval blockade of Iran's entire coastline, ports and oil terminals is due to take effect at 2000 GMT. Over the weekend, US CENTCOM said it had completed fresh strikes on Iran in response to attacks on commercial shipping, President Trump confirmed the blockade and warned of possible strikes on a hardened nuclear facility near Natanz, and Saudi Arabia was hit by Houthi linked attacks on an airport and in Jeddah.Monday's strike is also notable for where it happened. The southern lane of the strait and the waters off Oman are the same corridor regional operators have been counting on as an alternative to transiting Hormuz directly, including the UAE's own plans, reported through DP World, to build new port capacity at Fujairah specifically to route trade around the strait. A direct, fatal missile strike on UAE tankers in those waters undercuts the idea that shifting further from the strait's centre reduces exposure to the conflict.With the UAE now explicitly reserving the right to respond, the risk is no longer confined to a US Iran standoff over the blockade. A UAE Iranian confrontation, layered on top of the existing conflict, would mark a further widening of the parties directly involved, and leaves little basis for expecting the risk premium currently built into oil prices to ease in the near term. This article was written by fl6553e4b45d84486a91658a8b3f02bf22 at investinglive.com.