President Donald Trump said Friday that Iran violated the ceasefire agreement by launching attack drones at commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump confirmed the drone attack in a Truth Social post, writing, “The Islamic Republic of Iran shot at least four One Way Attack Drones at Ships transversing the Strait of Hormuz. One of the Drones solidly hit the upper deck of a large and very expensive Cargo Carrying Ship. Damage was done, but the Ship was able to proceed on its way. We knocked down three other Drones. Obviously, this is a foolish violation of our Ceasefire Agreement.”
Trump’s statement came after reports that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked a Singapore-flagged cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Two senior U.S. officials told the Journal the strike marked the first major alleged violation of the ceasefire agreement reached between the United States and Iran last week.
The strike damaged the vessel’s bridge but caused no reported casualties, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations. It came just hours after the IRGC Navy warned ships against using transit routes through the waterway that had not been approved by Iran.
Earlier this week, the International Maritime Organization said it was working with Iran, Oman, other coastal states, and the United States to establish an evacuation route for hundreds of commercial vessels still stranded in the Persian Gulf.
Following Thursday’s attack, however, the United Nations agency announced it was temporarily halting the operation.
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said the pause was necessary to “reconfirm that the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and all those in the region.” He added that the vessel targeted in Thursday’s attack “didn’t transit under the IMO’s evacuation framework.”
