US launches more strikes on Iran

The US military said ​it launched another round of strikes on Iran after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ‘struck’ a container ship traveling through the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday.

A series of attacks ‌between the US and Iran over the past several days led President Donald Trump to declare the end of a ceasefire meant to halt the fighting that the U.S. and Israel began on February 28, though Trump has left the door open to continued negotiations.

Iran said it closed the vital Strait of Hormuz after firing a warning shot that struck a vessel traveling on an unapproved route. It warned that any retaliation over the incident would be met with a “severe response.”

US Central Command identified ​the vessel as the M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged container ship, saying it suffered significant engine-room damage and that a civilian crew member was missing.

STRAIT OF HORMUZ AGAIN THE FOCUS OF WAR, ​DIPLOMACY

The war has destabilized the Gulf, while Iran’s effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has caused energy prices to surge, fuelling global inflation. Higher prices, ⁠especially for gasoline, are a politically sensitive issue for Trump ahead of November congressional elections.

Iran said several ships attempted to move through the waterway on an “unauthorized route” and disregarded warnings to correct their course. The strait — ​which was a conduit before the war for one-fifth of the world’s oil and LNG supplies — will remain closed until “the end of U.S. interference in this region,” the Revolutionary Guards said.

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Central Command said it began its ​strikes at 7:15 p.m. ET (2315 GMT) on Saturday, roughly an hour after the Iranians released their statement, which included a warning that “new enemy bases” in the Middle East would be targeted if the United States retaliated for the container ship incident.

Trump ordered the strikes, Central Command said. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Washington demands that Tehran publicly state it will stop attacks on ships in the strait — and that all lanes will be open without tolls, ​senior U.S. officials have said.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has accused the United States of violating the ceasefire agreement. “There can only be mutual compliance,” he wrote on X on Friday.

The US revoked the license authorizing the sale ​of Iranian crude on Tuesday after three Qatari and Saudi commercial tankers came under fire earlier in the week, prompting the US to hit Iranian sites. Iran then struck US military sites in Gulf states.

While Iran has not claimed responsibility ‌for the ship ⁠attacks, analysts say Tehran uses such actions to gain leverage in negotiations.

A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Iran, the US, Qatar and Pakistan had agreed to negotiate in a call that mediators were trying to arrange for Saturday while Araqchi was in Oman, a Gulf state trying to mediate an end to the war.