AP Explains: Mideast tensions threaten key global oil route

The brief standoff between British and Iranian naval vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday looks to renew concerns about the vulnerability of world energy supplies to tensions in the Persian Gulf region.
The British navy says it thwarted an attempt by the Iranians to impede the passage of a British oil tanker, a day after Iran warned of repercussions after its own supertanker was seized by authorities in Gibraltar for allegedly trying to breach European sanctions on oil shipments to Syria.