Image for representation purposes only A commercial vessel caught fire early on Monday in the Strait of Hormuz near the Omani coast, prompting a warning from British maritime authorities as U.S.-Iran tensions continued to disrupt shipping through the vital waterway. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report of an incident about 8 nautical miles northwest of Kumzar, Oman. Military authorities informed UKMTO that a vessel was on fire, but the cause of the blaze has not yet been confirmed. UKMTO advised vessels transiting the area to exercise caution and report any suspicious activity while authorities investigate the incident. The conflict between the United States and Iran entered its second week, with both sides carrying out fresh attacks across the region. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has largely stalled during the fighting, while concerns over the safety of commercial vessels have continued to grow. The US military has been encouraging ships to use a route close to Oman’s coastline while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has responded by attacking vessels using those routes, saying it should control navigation through the strategic waterway. The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s busiest maritime chokepoints, carrying nearly one-fifth of global oil and natural gas trade during peacetime. The vessel fire was reported as the United States launched another round of airstrikes on Iran early Monday. The US military said the latest operation marked the ninth straight night of strikes. U.S. Central Command said the strikes would continue to degrade Iranian military capabilities used to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The latest US strikes followed Washington’s announcement that another American service member had been killed. The US military said the service member died in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iran