Two ships have been fired upon by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO), with the incidents following an extension of a ceasefire in the Iran War touted by President Donald Trump.
The incidents reveal the attitude to the Trump-declared ceasefire by Tehran, which has condemned the continued U.S. blockade of Iranian ports pending a deal to reopen the vital waterway.
The incidents also signal Iran’s response to the U.S. capture of the Iranian flagged cargo ship the M/V Touska in the Gulf of Oman on April 19, which was accused of trying to run an American naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Also on Wednesday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy Command said that it had captured two other vessels, the MSC Francesca, which it said was linked to Israel, and the Epaminondas, reportedly owned by a Greek company.
In a statement on state agency Tasnim, the IRGC said the vessels had endangered maritime security by operating without the required permits and tampering with navigation systems and so were escorted to the Iranian coast.
“Disturbing the order and safety of the Strait of Hormuz is our red line,” the statement added, according to a translation.
Heavily Damaged Vessel
In the first incident, a gunboat from the IRGC fired on and heavily damaged a vessel’s bridge about 15 nautical miles northeast of Oman on Wednesday, according to the UKMTO, whose statement did not name the vessel.
No fires were reported on board and all the crew were safe, the statement added. Iran’s Fars news agency described the operation as Tehran “lawfully enforcing” its authority over the waterway.
Nour News, which is linked to Iran’s Supreme National Council, said the IRGC fired upon the vessel after it had ignored warnings from armed forces.
The UKMTO later reported that a second outbound cargo ship was fired upon in the waterway, eight nautical miles west of Iran. It had stopped in the water although it added there was no damage and the crew were safe and accounted for.
“UKMTO is aware of high levels of activity in the SoH [Strait of Hormuz] area and encourages vessels to report any suspicious activity,” said the statement by the UKMTO, which Newsweek has now contacted for further comment.
Iran has exploited its ability to control the passage of vessels in the strait in response to U.S. and Israeli attacks via the IRGC’s small, fast attack boats.
Trump said on social media that a ceasefire that ended Wednesday would be extended to allow for further peace talks although it is not clear if this has the backing of Tehran or Israel, the U.S. ally in the Iran War.
This is a retreat from his threats to bomb Iran’s power plants and bridges which had been condemned by the United Nations General António Guterres, while others have raised alarm at attacks targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Breaking the Blockade
Tehran considers the continued blockade of Iran’s trade by sea as an act of war and an advisor to Iran’s lead negotiator, the speaker of parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said on Wednesday that Trump’s announcement may be a ploy to buy time for a surprise strike.
Despite the U.S. blockade, at least 34 tankers linked to Iran have managed to bypass the restrictions, according to cargo tracking group Vortexa.
The Hero II and Hedy, two Iran-flagged crude carriers, were captured in satellite imagery moving past the blockade line and into the Arabian Sea on April 20, according to Vortexa.
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