On June 25, Iranʼs Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked a civilian merchant vessel under the Singapore flag in the Strait of Hormuz with a drone.
This was stated by an American official to CBS News.
According to the UKʼs Maritime Trade Operations Centre, which monitors maritime traffic in the region, an unidentified drone hit the starboard side of a container ship off the coast of Dakhita, Oman. It is not yet known whether the vessel was damaged or if anyone was injured.
The UNʼs International Maritime Organization (IMO) has since suspended a planned evacuation of hundreds of ships stranded in the Persian Gulf, the IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said, saying the move was necessary to review safety guarantees.
This is the first known attack on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz since June 18, when the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding that provides for a cessation of hostilities on all fronts for 60 days and the start of negotiations to completely end the war.
Iran has not claimed responsibility for the attack, but IRGC had previously said it would guarantee safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz only to ships traveling on routes approved by Iran.
- The Strait of Hormuz has remained closed since the start of the war between the United States and Iran in late February. It was reopened last week after the sides agreed to a 60-day ceasefire. The United States, for its part, lifted a naval blockade of Iranian ports. Against this backdrop, oil prices fell to their lowest level since March — $73 a barrel.
- On June 22, after talks in Switzerland, Iran and the United States agreed on a roadmap that should lead to a final deal within 60 days. On the same day, the United States temporarily lifted sanctions on the production, supply, and sale of Iranian oil.
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