Iranian Gunboats Fire On Tanker In Strait Of Hormuz As Iran Reimposes Restrictions

CAIRO (AP) — Tension over the Strait of Hormuz escalated Saturday again Iranian It reversed the reopening of the critical waterway in retaliation for the United States’ continued blockade of Iranian ports and opened fire on ships trying to pass through.

In its statement on Saturday night, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard navy stated that the strait was closed until the US blockade was lifted and warned that “No ships anchored in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of ​​Oman should move and that approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered as cooperation with the enemy and will not be targeted.”

New attacks are being made on the Bosphorus; Approximately one in five of these attacks survive. world’s oil Normally it would pass, it threatens to deepen the global energy crisis and push countries back into conflict as the war enters its eighth week.

Fragile truce It will be sold out by Wednesday. Iran said it had received new offers from the United States and that Pakistani mediators were working to hold another round of direct talks.

“Control of the Strait of Hormuz has been restored under the strict management and control of the armed forces,” Iran’s joint military command said in an earlier statement.

The British military’s UK Merchant Marine Operations center said Revolutionary Guard gunboats opened fire on a tanker and an unknown shell hit a container ship, damaging some containers. India’s foreign ministry said it summoned the Iranian ambassador over the “serious incident” of opening fire on two Indian-flagged merchant ships, especially after Iran had previously allowed many ships bound for India.

For IranianThe closure of the strait – implemented after the US and Israel started the war on February 28 during talks with Tehran. nuclear program — perhaps his most powerful weapon, threatening the world economy and inflicting political pain on President Donald Trump. For the United States, the blockade maintains pressure and could stifle Iran’s already weak economy.

Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, made defiant statements on Saturday, saying the navy was “ready to inflict bitter defeats on its enemies.” He has not been seen in public since he was elevated to the post following the death of his father in Israel’s opening barrage.

On Friday, Iran announced that the strait had reopened to commercial ships after a while. 10 day ceasefire It was announced that an agreement was reached between Israel and Iran-backed countries. Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. The reopening caused oil prices to fall.

However, Trump said that the US blockade 10 percent of Iran’s ports will “remain in full force” until Tehran reaches an agreement with the United States. Trump implemented the blockade after one round of trials Historic face-to-face meetings in Pakistan It ended without an agreement between the countries.

US Central Command said on Saturday that US forces had returned 23 ships to Iran since the blockade began on Monday. Trump’s words caused great reaction.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said, “With these miscalculations, Americans are putting the international community and the global economy at risk.” he told the Associated PressHe added that the United States was “putting the entire ceasefire package at risk.”

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council issued a statement calling the blockade a violation of the ceasefire and said Iran would prevent “any conditional and limited reopening” of the strait. The council has recently acted as Iran’s de facto top decision-making body.

The council said that since most of the supplies supplied to US military bases in the Gulf region come from the strait, “Iran is determined to keep the traffic in the strait under surveillance and control until the war is completely over.” This means routes determined by Iran, payment of fees and issuance of transit certificates.

The Revolutionary Guard navy’s statement later stated that no ships should attempt passage.

The renewed tension over the Bosphorus came just hours after Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said his country was working to “bridge” differences between the United States and Iran. Pakistan is expected to host the second round of talks early next week.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said “new proposals” from the US were presented and reviewed during the Pakistani army chief’s visit to Iran.

But Hatibzadeh said the Iranians were not ready for a new round of face-to-face talks because the Americans “have not abandoned their maximalist positions.”

He also stated that Iran would not hand over its 970 pounds (440 kilograms) stockpile of enriched uranium to the United States, calling the idea a “non-starter.” Khatibzadeh did not address other proposals regarding enriched uranium, saying only that “we are ready to address any concerns.”

Trump said Saturday that Iran was “getting a little sweet” but that “very good” talks were ongoing and more information would be available by the end of the day. “They can’t blackmail us,” he added.

On Friday, Trump said the United States would go to Iran and “get all the nuclear dust,” referring to enriched uranium believed to be buried under nuclear sites badly damaged in U.S. military strikes last year.

French President Emmanuel Macron said: a French soldier was killed Three people were also injured in an attack on UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon on Saturday. “Everything shows that the responsibility for this attack lies with Hezbollah,” Macron wrote on social media. UNIFIL peacekeepers also blamed Hezbollah.

Hezbollah denied involvement.

The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is a major sticking point in US-Iran talks, Pakistan’s foreign minister said. ceasefire in Lebanon The Iran deal was seen as support for their efforts.

It was unclear to what extent Hezbollah would comply with the ceasefire; it played no role in the negotiations, especially at a time when Israeli troops still occupied part of southern Lebanon.

Displaced families in Beirut took action again We are heading towards Southern Lebanon and the capital’s southern suburbs, despite warnings from authorities not to return home until it was clear whether the ceasefire would continue.

The Iran war has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran. More than 2,290 in Lebanon23 of them are in Israel and more than a dozen Gulf Arab countries. Thirteen US soldiers were killed.