Washington, United States. U.S. and Iranian forces clashed in the Gulf and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed attack, but President Donald Trump said a ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-up.
Clashes amid talks on ending the war
The escalation came as Washington awaited Tehran’s response to a U.S. proposal to end the war, which began on February 28 when the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran.
Trump describes attack on U.S. destroyers
Trump said on Thursday three U.S. Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for around a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows that Iran has all but closed since the conflict began.
“Three World Class American Destroyers just transited, very successfully, out of the Strait of Hormuz, under fire. There was no damage done to the three Destroyers, but great damage done to the Iranian attackers,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He later told reporters the ceasefire remained in effect and played down the exchange.
“They trifled with us today. We blew them away,” Trump said in Washington.
Iran accuses U.S. of breaching ceasefire
Iran accused the United States of breaching the ceasefire, an agreement that has been punctuated by intermittent clashes since it was announced on April 7.
Iran’s top joint military command said U.S. forces had targeted an Iranian oil tanker and another ship, and carried out air attacks on civilian areas on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz and nearby coastal areas. It said Iranian forces responded by attacking U.S. military vessels east of the strait and south of the port of Chabahar.
A spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said the Iranian strikes inflicted “significant damage,” but U.S. Central Command said none of its assets were hit.
Iranian media report return to normal
Iranian state media later signalled a de-escalation, with Press TV reporting that, after several hours of exchanges, “the situation on Iranian islands and coastal cities by the Strait of Hormuz is back to normal now.”
What developments will you be watching for next in the ceasefire between the United States and Iran?
