Tankers hit by Iranian gunfire and Strait of Hormuz shut once more as Tehran fights Trump blockade
Iranian gunboats opened fire on cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday after Tehran tightened its chokehold on the key waterway.
The attacks came soon after the regime abruptly reversed a decision to reopen the strait, citing an American statement that the US would not end its blockade of Iranian ports.
US President Donald Trump warned Iran against trying to ‘blackmail’ the US by closing the strait.
He insisted his officials were having ‘very good conversations’ with Tehran. ‘We’re talking to them. They wanted to close up the strait again as they’ve been doing for years, they can’t blackmail us,’ the President said at a press conference.
‘It’s working out very well. They got a little cute as they have been doing for 47 years,’ he added, warning that he would continue to take a ‘tough stand’ with Iranian leaders.
Earlier, troops on two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) gunboats fired on merchant vessels to the north of Oman without warning, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) security authority.
Two Indian vessels – a supertanker carrying two million barrels of Iraqi oil and a container ship – reported being hit by gunfire as they attempted to transit the strait. No injuries were reported but Indian diplomats flagged ‘deep concerns’ over the incident to Iran’s ambassador.
A US security official later reported that the IRGC had also attacked a third commercial ship in the channel.
US President Donald Trump has warned Iran against trying to ‘blackmail’ the US by closing the strait and insisted the two countries were having ‘very good conversations’
The regime abruptly reversed a decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz (pictured) citing an American statement that the US would not end its blockade of Iranian ports
In another incident three miles off the Oman coast, the master of a cruise ship reported to the UKMTO sighting ‘a splash’ close to the passenger vessel.
On social media Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said its navy was ready to inflict ‘new bitter defeats’ on its enemies.
It came only hours after President Trump said the American blockade ‘will remain in full force’ until Tehran reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear programme.
The conflict over the strait threatened to deepen the energy crisis after oil prices had begun to fall on Friday in the hope that the US and Iran were reaching an agreement.
Before Tehran reimposed the closure, a convoy of eight tankers transited the strait.
US forces have directed 23 ships to return to port since the start of the blockade, according to US Central Command.
The Wall Street Journal reported that US forces were preparing to board Iran-linked ships ‘in the coming days’.
Iran had agreed to reopen the strait after a ten-day truce was announced between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon but later declared the US blockade on its ports violated last week’s agreement.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, at a diplomatic forum in Turkey, urged Tehran to allow global shipping to resume.
She said: ‘We need the Strait of Hormuz open . . . because this helps all of our economies right across the world.’
Iran’s national security council said it was considering new US proposals, according to Iranian state media.
The ceasefire that started on Friday in Lebanon was under pressure yesterday after a French paratrooper was killed and three colleagues were wounded when a UN peacekeeping patrol came under small arms fire in the south.
‘Everything points to Hezbollah being responsible,’ French president Emmanuel Macron said. Hezbollah denied involvement.
