Iran ‘fires two missiles at US warship’ near Strait of Hormuz

They didn't take Trump's warning seriously

According to Iran's Fars news agency, the missiles hit the warship near Jask Island, after it ignored Iranian warnings.

Meanwhile, state TV has reported that Iran’s navy prevented the entry of US warships to the strait.

Iran’s claims have been denied by the US, Axios reported, citing the reaction from a senior US official.

US President Donald Trump has said that his country will start to guide ships “safely” out of the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.

Trump called it a “humanitarian gesture” while warning that any action that interferes will “have to be dealt with forcefully”.

The US Central Command said that 15,000 troops would be part of the navigation mission in the Strait of Hormuz, in the hours that followed Trump’s announcement.

Iran, meanwhile, said that any US efforts in the Strait of Hormuz “will be considered a violation of the ceasefire”, as it warned of a ceasefire breach.

How the Strait of Hormuz crisis unfolded

Following the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran in late February this year, shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a major waterway for world energy trade, has been largely blocked by Iran.

Iran has retaliated by launching missile and drone attacks on Israel, US military bases, and US-allied Gulf states.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) issued warnings forbidding passage through the strait, has boarded and attacked merchant ships, and has laid sea mines in the strait.

On the other hand, the US has blockaded Iranian ports, leading to a “dual blockade” of the strait.

Until the US–Israeli war against Iran, the Strait of Hormuz was open and about 25% of the world's seaborne oil trade and 20% of the world's liquefied natural gas passed through it.

Amid fears of prolonged supply shortages, oil prices rose faster than during any other conflict in recent history.

Brent crude oil prices surpassed US$100 per barrel in March of this year for the first time in four years, rising to US$126 per barrel at its peak.

The largest ever monthly increase in oil prices occurred in March of this year.

The closure of the strait has been the largest disruption to world energy supply since the 1970s energy crisis, as well as the largest in the history of the world oil market.

In the first week of April, a temporary ceasefire was agreed that was to involve the re-opening of the strait.

However, Iran began to control traffic through the strait and charging tolls of over $1 million per ship.

Following the failure of the Islamabad Talks, the US Navy itself began to blockade Iranian ports from 13 April.

In late April, Trump ordered the US Navy to destroy any Iranian boats laying mines in the Hormuz, while in the first week of May, he said that the US will help free up ships in the Strait of Hormuz beginning the next morning.

The situation has been described as a “dual blockade”, with the US Navy blockading Iran and Iran blockading the Gulf.