The Pentagon on May 26 denied reports that the United States had resumed naval escorts for commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, amid an uptick in regional tensions following a series of fresh American strikes on Iranian targets in what the U.S. military said was an act of self-defense. “Recent media reporting claims that the U.S. Navy has restarted escorting or assisting commercial vessels during transits through the Strait of Hormuz. FALSE,” U.S. Central Command said in a May 26 post on X, after the Iranian military claimed earlier on Tuesday that it had downed a U.S. military drone and fired shots at an F-35 fighter jet....