The United States on Tuesday, July 7, revoked a temporary general license that had authorized the sale of Iranian oil. The action by the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) followed a series of attacks on commercial vessels in and near the Strait of Hormuz.
The revocation came less than three weeks after the license was issued. In mid-June 2026, the United States and Iran reached an interim Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at de-escalating tensions and facilitating the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.
As part of that framework, on June 22, OFAC issued General License X (GL X). This 60-day authorization, set to expire on August 21, 2026, permitted the production, sale, delivery, and offloading of Iranian-origin crude oil, petrochemical products, and petroleum products. It also covered related transactions such as banking and insurance under certain conditions.
“The Office of Foreign Assets Control is revoking GL X, which authorized the sale of Iranian oil. As President Trump and the administration have repeatedly affirmed, the MOU in effect with Iran is entirely performance-based. Iran will only reap benefits if they exhibit good behavior,” A U.S. official with knowledge of Tuesday’s revocation told the New York Post.
“Iran’s actions in the Strait were wholly unacceptable to the United States and will be met with consequences. Our negotiators continue to work in good faith towards a final deal.”
The revocation follows a series of attacks on commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz over the preceding 24 hours. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) and the U.S. Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) reported that projectiles struck multiple commercial vessels transiting the strait or nearby waters off Oman’s coast.
Specific incidents included damage to a Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker, identified as the Al Rekayyat, which sustained a hit resulting in a fire in its engine room and posed a risk of explosion. A Saudi-flagged supertanker, the Wedyan, was also damaged, while a third tanker was struck by a drone and sustained minor damage but continued to its destination.
The JMIC raised the maritime threat level for vessels in the strait from “substantial” to “severe,” citing deliberate hostile action and recommending extreme vigilance. Shipping traffic through the strait dropped notably on the day of the reports.
Iran did not claim responsibility for the attacks. An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that commercial vessels using routes not coordinated with Iran or those “tampering” with ship tracking systems face risks and disrupt efforts to ensure safe passage. The spokesperson added that Iran was “diligently fulfilling its commitments” under the MoU regarding management of the strait and urged shipping companies to avoid actions contradicting its provisions.
Qatar and Saudi Arabia attributed responsibility for the incidents involving their vessels to Iran and issued formal protests. The sequence followed a period of relative calm in the waterway after the June MoU, during which shipping had resumed at higher volumes.The revocation reimposes restrictions on Iranian oil exports that had been temporarily eased.
Prior to the June general license, Iran operated under longstanding U.S. sanctions that significantly limited its ability to sell oil on international markets.
