Iran says US military killed five civilians in attacks on passenger boats
Iran accused the US military of killing five civilians after allegedly attacking two small passenger boats travelling from Khasab, Oman, to the Iranian coast
Tensions in the Strait of Hormuz escalated on Monday following a deadly maritime encounter, with Iran and the United States offering sharply differing accounts of the incident and its casualties.
Iran accused the US military of killing five civilians after allegedly attacking two small passenger boats travelling from Khasab, Oman, to the Iranian coast. An Iranian military commander said the United States must be held accountable for the deaths, reports Al Jazeera.
The US military disputed that version of events. Admiral Brad Cooper said forces under US Central Command had sunk six vessels belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that were attempting to interfere with an operation to escort stranded commercial ships.
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US President Donald Trump later said seven boats had been destroyed. The IRGC denied that any of its vessels were hit.
The confrontation comes as Washington presses ahead with "Project Freedom," a military operation aimed at reopening the Strait, a critical maritime route through which roughly one-fifth of global energy supplies pass.
Iran effectively blockaded the waterway following US and Israeli strikes on its territory on 28 Feb. The closure has contributed to rising oil and fertiliser prices and heightened concerns about a broader economic slowdown and potential food shortages.
Tehran has said it intends to maintain control over the Strait and is seeking transit fees, which it describes as compensation for damage caused by the United States and Israel.
The situation has been compounded by a series of reported incidents across the region.
The United Arab Emirates said Iran launched a drone strike on an oil tanker and fired 15 ballistic missiles and four drones at its territory, causing a large fire at a refinery in Fujairah and wounding three Indian nationals.
Separately, the South Korean vessel HMM Namu reported an explosion and fire in its engine room while operating in the Strait.
Despite the heightened tensions, the US military said two US-flagged ships transited the waterway on Monday with naval escort. The IRGC called the claim "baseless," though shipping company Maersk said one vessel, the Alliance Fairfax, had exited the Gulf under military protection.
The latest violence has strained a fragile ceasefire agreed between Washington and Tehran on 8 April.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticised the US operation, referring to it as "Project Deadlock" and saying there was no military solution to the crisis. He added that negotiations mediated by Pakistan had been making progress.
Trump, however, renewed warnings to Tehran, saying Iran would be "blown off the face of the Earth" if it attacked US vessels, and added that US bases were fully equipped for a potential escalation.
