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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Ras Al Khaimah

‘Worst nightmare’: anger and frustration as Gulf states bear brunt of war they did not start

Fishers in boats on the sea near the Strait of Hormuz with oil tankers in background
Fishing boats at work with tankers in the distance south of the strait of Hormuz off the port of Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. Photograph: Kamran Jebreili/AP

An eerie quiet hangs over Ras Al Khaimah’s industrial port. Usually a thriving maritime hub of the United Arab Emirates, now ships stand docked and silent. Not far out along the hazy horizon, a backlog of hundreds of tankers have lined up in recent days, halted along a waterway flooded with danger.

Any vessel heading past Ras Al Khaimah out to the Arabian Sea must traverse the world’s most treacherous strip of water for shipping today: the strait of Hormuz. Just over 20 nautical miles from Ras Al Khaimah, two oil tankers heading for the strait were attacked by Iranian missiles this week, one catching fire.

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