Oil markets reacted to the latest escalation after prices had already climbed on Iran’s earlier remarks. The compensation demand marks a new element in Washington’s position, having not previously featured publicly in US negotiations or statements on Iran. “Also, with respect to the Iran negotiations, Iran should be responsible for the damages and death caused to the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza!” The competing demands for compensation from Washington and Tehran mark another dramatic turn in months of volatile rhetoric surrounding the conflict. The US and Iran reached a ceasefire in June, but Washington reinstated its blockade on Iranian shipping in the Gulf the following month.