• Gulf of Oman: Connects Arabian Sea to the Persian Gulf. One of the main trade routes for the oil producing countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Bahrain, Qatar etc.
• Neighboring countries: Oman, UAE, Pakistan and Iran.
• Strait of Hormuz: Connects Gulf of Oman to the Persian Gulf.
• Background of the attacks: Ongoing sanctions on Iran by the U.S due to the withdrawal of U.S from the JCPOA. Also, the escalating tension in the Persian Gulf between the Saudi Arabia (backed by US and other western nations) and Iran (backed by Russia and China).
• CENTCOM: U.S central command, which is its premiere warfighting combat command. It is deployed in the Central region of Asia to protect the interests of U.S allies and to check the growth of extremist organisations from the region.