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Iran fired on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz and seized two of them on Wednesday, intensifying assault on shipping in the key waterway.
The Associated Press reports that the assault came a day after US President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire while maintaining an American blockade of Iranian ports.
The standoff between the US and Iran has effectively choked off nearly all exports through the strait with no end in sight. The strait controls 20% of the world’s traded oil passes in peacetime.
Iranian media said the paramilitary Revolution Guard was bringing the two ships to Iran, marking a further escalation. The White House has said the seizures didn’t violate ceasefire terms.
The conflict has already sent gas prices skyrocketing far beyond the region and raised the cost of food and a wide array of other products. The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, nosed over $100 per barrel, marking a 35% increase from prewar levels, but stock markets still appear to be shrugging it off.
The European Union energy commissioner, Dan Jorgensen, warned of lasting impact for consumers and businesses, likening it to other major energy crises over the last half-century. He said t5he disruption is costing Europe around $600 million each day.
Iran holds firm in apparent tit-for-tat with the US.
Iranian said the MSC Francesca and Epaminondas were being escorted to Iran. The US had earlier seized two Iranian vessels as the ceasefire talks were due to take place in Pakistan.
Technomar, the management company behind the Liberian-registered Epaminondas, said it was “approached and fired upon by a manned gunboat” off the coast of Oman. It said the ship’s bridge was damaged.
A second cargo ship came under fire hours later, with no report of damage, though it was then stopped in the water. No injuries to the crew of either vessel were reported. Panama condemned what it called the “illegal seizure” of t6he Panama-flagged MSC Francesca, and said it represented a serious attack on maritime security.
The Guard attacked a third ship, identified as the Euphoria, which had become “stranded” on the Iranian coast, Iranian media reported.
Still, Iran’s seizure of the ships didn’t violate truce terms because “these were not US or Israeli ships, these were two international vessels,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Channel.
Iran’s ability to restrict traffic through the strait has proved a major strategic advantage for the country.
While the ceasefire means American and Israeli airstrikes have stopped in Iran while Tehran’s missiles no longer target Israel and the wider Middle East, the maritime standoff continues and could escalate.
