In a fresh round of tensions in fragile US-Iran negotiations, the US on Monday said it has launched “powerful” strikes on Iranian missile and drone storage facilities, and coastal radar sites, in response to a drone attack on a commercial ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) condemned the strikes, saying they violated commitments. It also reiterated that US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) gave Tehran control over traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM), tasked to West Asia, said its forces conducted strikes on June 26 as a “powerful response” to yesterday’s attack on a commercial ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
“US aircraft struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites after Iran hit M/V Ever Lovely on June 25 with a one-way attack drone,” the US said.
The Singapore-flagged cargo ship was exiting the Strait of Hormuz along the Omani coast when it was attacked. The unwarranted aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces clearly violated the ceasefire.
Furthermore, Iran’s dangerous behaviour undermined freedom of navigation as commerce increasingly flows through the vital international trade corridor. The US said, “The CENTCOM forces continue to provide safe passage coordination and support to commercial vessels transiting the strait”.
The US military remains present and vigilant to ensure all aspects of the agreement with Iran are adhered to, obeyed, and in full force and effect, it added.
US President Donald Trump had earlier said that the Iranian drone attack on the Ever Lovely cargo ship was “a foolish violation” of the deal.
Meanwhile, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organisation (IMO) had yesterday paused its Strait of Hormuz evacuation initiative after the attack in the Gulf of Oman.
The IMO on Tuesday had begun evacuating 600 ships and around 11,000 mariners stranded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israeli war on Iran, helping them leave the Gulf through two routes – one via Iranian waters and another via Omani waters with US oversight.
