The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence announced on Tuesday that one Indian crew member died and eight other?were injured when two Emirati oil tankers were hit by Iranian cruise missiles in?the Strait of Hormuz. This was the latest escalation of the strategic waterway.

According to the ministry, both the Mombasa, and Al Bahiyah tankers were attacked in the southern lane while they were in Omani waters. It said the crew member who died was aboard the Mombasa.

Four of the eight injured were severely injured. The ministry reported that six of the eight wounded were Indians and two Ukrainians.

Both tankers sustained material damage after fires broke out on board. The ministry stated that the fires were under control.

The UAE has the right to react to such an escalation.

The ministry said that the UAE was fully prepared to handle any threats, and took all the necessary measures to respond firmly against any attempts to undermine security and stability in the country.

Separately, United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Agency said on Tuesday that an unknown projectile had struck a tanker while it was travelling 40 nautical mile northeast of Oman's Qalhat.

The UKMTO reported that the tanker's captain reported that the projectile had struck the engine room on the port side and that all crew members were safe.

It was not possible to verify immediately whether the UKMTO's report referred the incident reported by the UAE Ministry of Defence. Iran has not made any comments on the recent attacks.

The recent incidents on the waterway come after weeks of increased tensions, since the war began on February 28 when Israel and the United States launched attacks against Iran. Donald Trump announced on Monday that the U.S. would re-establish its blockade of Iranian ships in the Gulf, and ensure the Strait of Hormuz would remain open – for a fee. He also warned that U.S. troops would strike Iran "very hard" again in the hours to come after both sides had exchanged drone and missile attacks.

Iran's joint military command said that the U.S. would not be allowed to interfere in the future of this waterway. Iran has attacked U.S. bases across multiple countries, destabilising the Gulf. The conflict has also called into question the interim U.S. - Iranian?agreement that was signed last month in order to reopen and halt hostilities.

Before the conflict started in February, approximately a fifth (or 15 million barrels) of all oil and gas transported to the global market was delivered through Hormuz. This fuel is worth more than $1.2 billion.

(source: Reuters)