DUBAI — Iranian gunboats fired on two ships in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday as Tehran maintained its grip on the vital energy channel, while two of its own oil supertankers tested a US blockade.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations, a naval liaison with the shipping industry, said on X that a cargo ship and a container ship came under fire in the waterway.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirmed that its naval forces intercepted two vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday over alleged violations.
In a statement, the IRGC Navy said the vessels — identified as MSC Francesca, which it described as “linked to Israel,” and Epaminodeswere stopped for repeated violations, including operating without authorization and allegedly tampering with navigation systems.
The force said the vessels were attempting to exit the strait “covertly” and were intercepted based on intelligence monitoring.
According to the statement, both vessels have been transferred to Iranian territorial waters for inspection of their cargo and documentation.
Tensions have remained high since the outbreak of war between Iran, the United States and Israel on February 28.
The IRGC Navy said it continues to monitor maritime traffic in the waterway and warned that any actions violating Iran’s navigation rules or threatening maritime security would be met with “decisive and legal action.”
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said early Wednesday a cargo ship came under gunfire near Iran’s coast in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the second such reported incident that day.
The agency said a vessel was fired upon approximately 8 nautical miles west of Iran’s coast and later stopped, though no damage or casualties were reported.
In another incident, a container ship reported being approached by a gunboat linked to the IRGC near the strait.
UKMTO said it has received dozens of reports of attacks and suspicious activities affecting vessels in the region since late February.
Meanwhile, analytics firm Vortexa said Iran moved supertankers into the Arabian Sea, an area where the US has sought to block Iranian shipping.
US forces have so far detained one container ship in the Gulf of Oman and boarded a sanctioned tanker in the Indo-Pacific. US Central Command said on Tuesday the US Navy had directed 28 vessels to turn back to Iranian ports since the blockade began.
“The blockade has been a tremendous success,” Trump said in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday, adding that he would not lift the US embargo on the Strait of Hormuz until Washington reached a “final deal” with Iran.
But tens of ships have managed to circumvent the blockade, according to Vortexa. At least 19 tankers with links to Iran have passed through the US blockade to exit the Gulf. At least 15 have entered the Gulf, heading towards Iran from the Arabian Sea. — Agencies
Source: Saudi Gazette