US Strikes on Iran: Strait of Hormuz Crisis Threatens UK Fuel Prices as Khamenei Buried in Mashhad

**Keywords:** Iran strikes, Strait of Hormuz, UK fuel prices, Khamenei funeral, US ceasefire collapse, British energy bills, Ministry of Defence, Treasury inflation, Foreign Office Gulf, oil crisis 2026 The sudden collapse of the US-brokered ceasefire with Iran has sent an immediate chill through British households already stretched by the cost of living. With oil prices recording their sharpest rise in nearly two months, motorists can expect higher petrol costs at the pump within days, while the Treasury and Department for Energy Security and Net Zero monitor the risk of renewed inflation in household energy bills. The trigger for this latest escalation lies in Washington’s decision to resume strikes on Iranian targets even as the funeral processions for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continue across Iran and Iraq. Khamenei was killed on 28 February in joint US-Israeli strikes on a bunker in Tehran. His funeral, which began on 9 July 2026 in Mashhad, was intended to project national unity. Instead it has unfolded against a backdrop of fresh American bombardment and Iranian retaliation that now threatens the free flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint on which the United Kingdom remains heavily dependent.

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US Resumes Strikes on Iran as Khamenei Lies in State in Mashhad Mashhad, Iran – 10 July 2026 — Up to 43 million mourners are expected to file past the coffin of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over six days of processions that began yesterday at the Imam Reza shrine. The funeral, the largest public event in Iran since the 1979 revolution, is taking place under active US air operations. American warplanes struck approximately 90 targets across the country last night, following an initial wave of roughly 80 targets the previous evening. The timing has turned a solemn national rite into a demonstration of continued military pressure. The United States Central Command confirmed that precision-guided munitions were used against Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities, air-defence radars and ballistic-missile storage sites. Iranian state media reported secondary explosions at several locations near Tehran and Isfahan. Despite the funeral’s scale, Iranian authorities have maintained that the burial at the Imam Reza shrine will proceed without interruption. The ceasefire negotiated by the Trump administration in the spring had appeared to hold until early July. Its abrupt breakdown has left European diplomats scrambling and has placed the United Kingdom’s Gulf interests directly in the firing line.

US Strikes and Iranian Retaliation

American officials described the second night of strikes as a calibrated response to Iranian non-compliance with the ceasefire terms. Roughly 170 targets have now been hit in total. The Pentagon emphasised that civilian infrastructure was avoided and that battle-damage assessments were still being compiled. Cruise missiles launched from ships in the Arabian Sea supplemented strikes by B-2 and B-52 bombers operating from Diego Garcia. Iran’s response was swift. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired ten ballistic missiles at Jordan’s Azraq Air Base, a key hub for US Central Command operations in the region. Additional missiles struck US facilities in at least two other Gulf states. Casualty figures remain unclear, though the Jordanian government confirmed that its armed forces had activated full air-defence protocols. Israel, which participated in the initial February strikes, has stated it stands ready for a “third” wave should Iranian retaliation continue. The ceasefire’s collapse has removed the last diplomatic buffer between Washington and Tehran. With both sides exchanging fire while Khamenei’s coffin travels through Mashhad, the prospect of rapid de-escalation appears remote.

Strait of Hormuz: Battle for Global Energy

Iran has declared that it now exercises “full control” over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and will impose a payment mechanism on all vessels. The announcement immediately raised fears of a partial blockade. The UK Maritime Trade Operations centre in Dubai reported that three commercial tankers had been struck by unidentified projectiles while transiting the strait yesterday evening. No fatalities have been confirmed, but one vessel is listing and under tow. Oil prices on international markets jumped more than eight per cent in early trading, the largest single-day increase since May. The UK maritime authority issued fresh security warnings to all British-flagged vessels, advising them to maintain maximum distance from Iranian territorial waters. The Department for Transport has activated its crisis-monitoring cell in London. The United States is attempting to open an alternative route along Oman’s southern coast, but capacity is limited. Any sustained disruption to the 21 million barrels that normally pass through the strait each day would quickly feed through to British forecourts and power stations. " class="img-fluid" alt="Strait of Hormuz tanker route">

Khamenei’s Final Journey

The six-day funeral programme has been organised with military precision. Processions began in Tehran, moved south through Qom and into Iraq before returning to Mashhad, the spiritual heart of Shia Iran. The Imam Reza shrine, one of the holiest sites in the Shia world, is expected to receive the coffin today. Security is provided by tens of thousands of Revolutionary Guard personnel, many of whom have remained visibly loyal to the late leader’s hardline faction. Succession remains unsettled. While the Assembly of Experts is due to meet within weeks, the IRGC’s political influence has grown markedly during the crisis. Analysts note that any new supreme leader will inherit both a weakened conventional military and a ballistic-missile arsenal that has already been used against US positions. The funeral is therefore not only a religious event but a demonstration of regime resilience under bombardment. Iranian television has broadcast continuous footage of mourners waving flags while air-raid sirens sound in the distance. " class="img-fluid" alt="Khamenei funeral in Mashhad">

What This Means for the UK

The immediate domestic impact will be felt at the petrol pump. The RAC and AA have both modelled scenarios in which average unleaded prices rise by 12 to 15 pence per litre within a fortnight, adding roughly £7 to the cost of filling a typical family car. That increase would arrive on top of already elevated prices following the 2022 energy shock and would hit rural communities and the self-employed hardest. The Treasury is preparing revised inflation forecasts for the autumn statement. Officials at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are monitoring wholesale gas prices and have indicated that contingency plans for targeted bill support remain on the table should the situation deteriorate further. Any repeat of the scale of support offered in 2022 would place significant pressure on already stretched public finances. The Foreign Office has instructed its ambassadors in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Muscat to seek urgent clarification on Gulf states’ intentions. Britain’s military footprint in the region, centred on the Royal Navy’s presence at the Bahraini base and RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, is being reviewed by the Ministry of Defence. Additional maritime patrol aircraft have been placed on standby, though ministers have so far ruled out any immediate troop surge. Road freight operators in the North of England and the Midlands are particularly exposed. Higher diesel costs are expected to feed quickly into supermarket prices and construction materials. Rural communities reliant on longer supply chains will feel the pinch first. The Department for Transport has asked haulage associations to provide daily updates on fuel availability. The NHS has activated fuel contingency protocols for its ambulance fleet. While strategic reserves are considered adequate for several weeks, any prolonged disruption would force difficult choices about non-emergency transport. Supply-chain managers are also examining ventilator and pharmaceutical deliveries that rely on just-in-time logistics. Historically, Britain has faced similar shocks in 1973 and again in 2022. Each episode produced lasting shifts in energy policy and public tolerance for higher costs. The current crisis arrives at a moment when the government is already navigating post-election fiscal constraints and renewed debate over North Sea licensing.

The Bottom Line

Diplomatic off-ramps remain theoretically available through Oman and Switzerland, but neither Washington nor Tehran appears inclined to pursue them while funerals and strikes dominate the news cycle. Chatham House and RUSI analysts suggest that any negotiated pause would require verifiable limits on Iranian missile activity and a clear timetable for lifting certain sanctions—conditions that look distant today. For British politics the timing is awkward. With a general election still fresh in voters’ minds, sustained higher fuel prices could quickly erode public confidence in the government’s economic management. Opposition parties are already preparing to link the crisis to what they describe as insufficient diversification of energy supplies. The coming weeks will test whether the Strait of Hormuz can be kept open without further military confrontation. Winter energy costs, already a source of anxiety, now carry an additional geopolitical premium that no household budget can easily absorb. By Erica Thornton, Staff Writer