US President Donald Trump said Iran had “taken some shots” but caused little harm in the Strait of Hormuz Monday, while urging South Korea to join the war after one of its vessels was hit.
In a Truth Social post, Trump also made no mention of apparent attacks on the United Arab Emirates and Oman, in an apparent effort to downplay tensions in the face of surging oil prices.
The developments have shaken an already fragile ceasefire, with US warships also moving through the crucial waterway Monday in what Trump says is an effort to protect shipping.
“Iran has taken some shots at unrelated Nations with respect to the Ship Movement, PROJECT FREEDOM, including a South Korean Cargo Ship. Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission!” wrote Trump.
“Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait.”
Trump said US forces had “shot down” seven small Iranian military boats. A US admiral earlier said six such vessels were destroyed, but Tehran denied any had been sunk.
US admiral says
The United States has destroyed six Iranian boats and shot down missiles and drones fired at US Navy and commercial vessels by Tehran’s forces, a top US admiral said Monday.
The military action occurred as American forces seek to facilitate the transit of commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in an effort dubbed “Project Freedom” that President Donald Trump announced on Sunday.
US Apache and Seahawk helicopters hit “six Iranian small boats threatening commercial shipping,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command (CENTCOM), told journalists.
US forces also “effectively engaged” all “missiles and drones that were fired at both us and the commercial ships,” Cooper said.
Some cruise missiles were launched at US Navy ships but most of them as well as multiple drones targeted commercial vessels, he said.
“We defended both ourselves and, consistent with our commitment, we defended all the commercial ships,” Cooper said.
US and Israeli forces launched a massive military campaign against Iran on February 28, prompting Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz — a vital route for oil and gas exports — while American forces later launched a blockade of Iranian ports.
Iranian state television said earlier Monday that the country’s navy had fired cruise missiles, rockets and combat drones near US destroyers crossing the strait in what it described as a “warning shot.”
CENTCOM said that two US guided-missile destroyers had passed through the strait into the Gulf as part of “Project Freedom,” while two US-flagged merchant vessels transited the opposite way and “are safely headed on their journey.”
AFP
