DUBAI/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The fragile truce in the Middle East was in jeopardy on Tuesday after the US and Iran launched new attacks as they wrestled for control of the Strait of Hormuz.
The US military said it destroyed six Iranian small boats, as well as cruise missiles and drones, after President Donald Trump sent the navy to escort stranded tankers through the strait in a campaign he called “Project Freedom”.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, said in a social media post on Tuesday that the security of shipping and energy transit had been threatened by breaches of the four-week-old ceasefire by the US and its allies.
The strait is a vital thoroughfare for global supplies of oil, fertiliser and other commodities that has been virtually closed since the US and Israel began attacks on Iran on February 28, causing price rises around the world.
Several merchant ships in the Gulf reported explosions or fires on Monday, and an oil port in the United Arab Emirates, which hosts a large US military base, was set ablaze by Iranian missiles.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has effectively closed the narrow waterway under threat of mines, drones, missiles and gunboats. The US has responded with a blockade of Iranian ports.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Monday’s events showed there was no military solution to the crisis. He said peace talks were progressing with Pakistan’s mediation, and warned the U.S. and the UAE against being drawn into a “quagmire.”
The U.S. military said two U.S. merchant ships made it through the strait, without saying when, with the support of Navy guided-missile destroyers.
While Iran denied any crossings had taken place, Maersk said the Alliance Fairfax, a U.S.-flagged ship, exited the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz accompanied by the U.S. military on Monday.
The commander of U.S. forces in the region said his fleet had destroyed six small Iranian boats, which Iran also denied. Iranian media quoted a military commander as saying U.S. forces targeted civilian boats, killing five civilians.
Iran also said it had fired on a U.S. warship approaching the strait, forcing it to turn around. Iranian officials later described the fire as warning shots.
Oil prices eased 1% on Tuesday after climbing by as much as 6% in the previous session on signs the U.S. Navy is loosening Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz.
The war in the Middle East has cost thousands of lives and roiled the global economy. U.S. and Iranian officials have held one round of face-to-face peace talks, but attempts to set up further meetings have failed.
Trump has said the U.S.-Israeli attacks aimed to eliminate what he called imminent threats from Iran, citing its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, its support for Hamas and Hezbollah and its “menacing activities”.
