Iran attacked a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday as regime forces assert control over the strategic waterway.
“Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attacked a Singapore-flagged cargo ship Thursday in the Strait of Hormuz, according to two senior U.S. officials, testing the deal signed last week by the U.S. and Iran to end the fighting and reopen the vital shipping lane,” The Wall Street Journal reported.
Initial reports indicate that a drone struck the ship. “A cargo vessel has been hit on the starboard side by an unknown projectile, causing damage to the bridge,” the British Navy’s Maritime Trade Organisation (UKMTO) said in a statement on Thursday.
Amid Iranian aggression, the United Nations suspended its maritime operation to assist stranded ships in sailing through the waterway. “The UN International Maritime Organization paused its programme to shepherd ships and seafarers through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday after a cargo ship reported a suspected attack, reigniting fears over a preliminary deal to end the Iran war,” Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
The French TV channel Euronews reported:
A cargo ship travelling through the Strait of Hormuz on a new Oman UN-backed route was hit by a projectile on Thursday, sustaining bridge damage, but no casualties or environmental impact, the British military said.The ship was struck 7,5 nautical miles off the coast of Oman after Iran’s IRGC earlier in the day threatened vessels travelling through the strait without Tehran’s permission.A video recorded on the bridge of a ship was posted on social media purporting to air an IRGC Navy radio broadcast warning that only vessels with Iranian permission were allowed to pass.”Transit only with IRGC permission, on designated routes. No permission, AIS off, or off-route, and you carry the consequences,” the broadcast reportedly said. (…)The naval arm of the Revolutionary Guard, apparently reacting to the new shipping route and increased traffic, issued a warning Thursday, carried by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency.It said the new route was established without notice or coordination with Iran, calling it “unacceptable and completely dangerous.”“The only authorised route for passing through the Strait of Hormuz is the one declared by the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the Iranian force said. “Vessel traffic outside these routes is extremely dangerous and prohibited.”“Violators will be dealt with,” it added, without elaborating.
According to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the U.S. and Iran, the regime is obliged to restore maritime traffic in the Strait within 30 days and ensure toll-free access to shipping. Contrary to that agreement, Tehran is now asking the Gulf Arab states to pay $40 billion to open the waterway.
“Iran is pushing to make billions of dollars from the Strait of Hormuz as the regime positions itself to manage the global oil artery it severed at the start of the war,” The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. “The Islamic Republic estimates that charging for security, safety and environmental services in the strait would bring in $40 billion a year in revenue for states involved, according to officials familiar with the matter.”
The Trump administration has assured that it will not allow the regime to get away with extortion and piracy in international waters. “It’s an international waterway,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during his visit to the Gulf States on Tuesday. “No country is allowed to charge tolls or fees on an international waterway. That’s existing international law. That’s the way it is in international waterways all over the world, and that’s the way we expect it’ll be here.”
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