Washington was waiting on a response from Tehran to its latest proposal to end the war in the Gulf on Friday, as US and Iranian forces traded fire in the region and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) came under renewed attack.
Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz since a ceasefire began a month ago, despite signals from Washington and Tehran that they were closer than ever to a deal.
“We should know something today,” US secretary of state Marco Rubio told reporters in Rome on Friday. “We’re expecting a response from them ... The hope is it’s something that can put us into a serious process of negotiation.”
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said Tehran was still weighing its response.
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Sporadic clashes between Iranian forces and US vessels were taking place in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported. The Tasnim news agency later cited an Iranian military source saying the situation had calmed, but warning more clashes were possible “if Americans try to enter the Gulf again and cause trouble for Iranian vessels”.
The US military said it struck two Iran-linked vessels attempting to enter an Iranian port, with a US fighter jet hitting their smokestacks and forcing them to turn back.
Iran has largely blocked non-Iranian shipping through the strait since the war began, while the US last month imposed a blockade on Iranian vessels.
US president Donald Trump said on Thursday the ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-ups. Washington is awaiting Tehran’s response to a US proposal that would formally end the war before talks on more contentious issues, including Iran’s nuclear programme.
Trump said three US navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the strait, and the US military fired back.
Iran accused the US of breaching the ceasefire, which had largely held since it was announced on April 7th but has come under strain this week after Trump announced – and then paused – a naval mission to reopen the strait.
“Every time a diplomatic solution is on the table, the US opts for a reckless military adventure,” Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday.
Iran’s top joint military command said US forces targeted an Iranian oil tanker and another ship, and carried out air attacks on civilian areas on Qeshm Island in the strait and nearby coastal areas. It said Iranian forces responded by attacking US military vessels east of the strait and south of the port of Chabahar.
A spokesperson for Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said the Iranian strikes inflicted “significant damage”, but US Central Command said none of its assets was hit.
Iran’s Mehr news agency reported that one crew member was killed, 10 wounded and four missing after a US navy attack on an Iranian commercial ship late on Thursday near the strait, a key energy route through which about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas usually passes.
The confrontation extended beyond the waterway. The UAE said its air defences engaged with two ballistic missiles and three drones from Iran on Friday, with three people sustaining moderate injuries.
During the war, Iran has repeatedly targeted the emirates and other Gulf states that host US military bases. In what the emirates called a “major escalation”, Iran stepped up attacks this week after Trump announced “Project Freedom” to escort ships in the strait before pausing it after 48 hours.
The latest US proposal would formally end the conflict first, before addressing Washington’s core demands, including curbing Iran’s nuclear programme and reopening the strait. Tehran, which made a similar proposal last week, said it had not yet reached a decision on the plan. – Reuters
