(new: reaction from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.)
TEHRAN/WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) – The USA and Iran have once again launched mutual attacks in the Strait of Hormuz despite a ceasefire and ongoing negotiations to end the war. The US military attacked a position in the city of Bandar Abbas from which drones were controlled, a US official said. Four drones were shot down. The Iranian news agency Tasnim quoted a domestic military source as saying that an American oil tanker wanted to pass through the strait with its radar system turned off. The Revolutionary Guards – the elite armed forces of the Islamic Republic – fired on him and forced him to turn back.
None of the information provided by either side could initially be independently verified. A fifth drone was about to be fired from the attacked position in Bandar Abbas, the US official explained the US attacks. “These measures were restrained, purely defensive and aimed at maintaining the ceasefire.” Iranian media had recently reported the sound of explosions near Bandar Abbas.
There has been a ceasefire in the war since April 8th. Nevertheless, there were several mutual attacks around the Strait of Hormuz afterwards.
Kuwait under attack again
The Revolutionary Guards announced early this morning that they had attacked the US air base from which the US military had fired on an area near Bandar Abbas airport. The Gulf state of Kuwait reported rocket and drone fire. The country’s army announced on Platform X that air defense was in use to repel the attacks. There was initially no information about possible damage or victims.
It was also initially unclear where the fire came from. However, after the American-Israeli attacks against Iran began on February 28, Iran fired missiles and drones several times at Kuwait and other Persian Gulf states. The US military maintains numerous bases there, which are only a few hundred kilometers away from Iran as the crow flies. Despite the current ceasefire in the Iran war, the United Arab Emirates and other Gulf states have recently reported renewed shelling in isolated cases.
In the morning, the Iranian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the overnight US attacks. In a statement, Foreign Office spokesman Ismail Baghai spoke of repeated violations of the ceasefire. He also reiterated his country’s determination to respond to the attacks within the framework of the right to self-defense.
US sanctions authority to control strait
The capital of Hormuzgan Province is considered one of Iran’s most important military centers in the Gulf region and on the Strait of Hormuz. After the war began, Tehran effectively blocked the strait, which was important for global oil and gas trade. As a result, prices on global energy markets shot up. In return, the USA blocked Iranian ports.
Since then, shipping companies have had to coordinate with Iranian contact points to transit through the Strait of Hormuz and are then only allowed to pass through a corridor near the Iranian coast. Tehran charges high fees for this. The US Treasury Department has therefore now placed the authority responsible for management and fee collection on the sanctions list.
The US Treasury Department said the plan to charge a fee for passage through the strait violates international law. The government in Washington is warning shipowners against cooperating with the Iranian authorities to pass through the strait. This could be seen as support for the Revolutionary Guards and could therefore also be subject to sanctions.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently emphasized that the Strait of Hormuz does not belong to Iran. “If we allowed this to become normal, we would be normalizing an unacceptable status quo,” he said. Should a framework agreement be reached between the US and Iran as part of ongoing negotiations – which remains uncertain – it would result in a “completely open strait” without fees, Rubio said.
Trump issues warning to Oman
US President Donald Trump commented on reports that Oman, which also geographically borders the Strait of Hormuz, is in talks with Iran about joint control and regulation of the strait with a clear threat: “No one will control it. Oman will behave like everyone else, or we have to blow them up. They understand that,” he said in response to a question from reporters during a cabinet meeting on Wednesday (local time). The US State Department published the corresponding video excerpt on the X platform.
“The Strait of Hormuz will be open to everyone, it is international waters,” Trump emphasized before making the threat. Iran recently said again that the Strait of Hormuz is a matter for the neighboring states Iran and Oman.
Trump dissatisfied with the status of negotiations
The de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is putting a massive strain on the global economy – and is the ultimate means of pressure for Iran in the negotiations. US President Donald Trump said in a cabinet meeting that no one would control the strait. The US would pay attention. That is part of the negotiations. In his view, the status of negotiations is currently not satisfactory. At the cabinet meeting, the Republican said Iran was very determined: “They definitely want to conclude an agreement.”
But the US government is not yet “satisfied,” said Trump. He renewed his threat that they would either make a deal or continue fighting and “finish the matter.”
Iranian politician: Stick to red lines
However, according to a senior politician, Iran is sticking to its core demands. Ebrahim Azizi, Chairman of Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, wrote on Platform X that Trump’s rhetoric will not dissuade them from their “red lines.”
These included the right to enrich uranium, control of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of sanctions. As far as is known, Azizi is not directly involved in the negotiations with the USA. He further wrote: “It is clear that Trump is looking for a way out of this strategic impasse, alternating between threats and appeals for an agreement.”
Trump had raised hopes of a quick agreement over the weekend, but later dampened them by saying both sides had to take the necessary time. A core demand of the USA – and also of Israel’s war partner – is that the country should never come into possession of a nuclear weapon./ln/DP/men