US says it stopped merchant ship trying to break blockade and reach Iran

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military stopped a merchant ship attempting to break a blockade of Iranian ports by firing a missile at its engine room, U.S. Central Command announced Saturday.

The Gambian-flagged cargo ship Lian Star ignored more than 20 warnings from U.S. forces overnight as it attempted to enter an Iranian port, the military said. The ship remained adrift in the Gulf of Oman and U.S. forces did not board it, a U.S. official with knowledge of the situation said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.

In this latest action, the U.S. military stopped six ships attempting to break the blockade. One of them was allowed to continue. Another 116 ships were redirected, the military said.

READ MORE: US military arrests Iranian-flagged tanker suspected of trying to violate blockade

The United States launched the blockade on April 17 in response to Iran effectively closing the strait after the Middle East war began with US and Israeli strikes on February 28. A fragile ceasefire has been in effect since April 7. The region is now waiting to hear whether a deal can be reached to extend it for another 60 days while negotiations take place over Iran’s controversial nuclear program.

Events in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway between Iran and Oman, have shaken the global economy. Shipments of significant quantities of oil, natural gas and related products like fertilizers are largely blocked, increasing pressure on consumers and food producers.

The U.S. blockade aims to limit Iran’s own shipments and further weaken its access to liquidity, creating more pain for its long-weakened economy.

US President Donald Trump met with his advisers on Friday but has yet to decide whether to move forward with a deal to extend the ceasefire and reopen the strait. Iran said the deal was not finalized.

Commercial traffic has quietly continued to transit the strait, despite Iran’s claims that it must approve any transit, although at a much lower volume than before the war.

“Any violation of these regulations will seriously endanger the security of their passage,” Iran’s joint military command said in a statement broadcast by state television on Saturday, warning that any military vessel attempting to interfere with the passage would be targeted.

Iran has even imposed transit fees of up to $2 million, which experts have called a violation of a principle of international maritime commerce: freedom of peaceful navigation.

Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman bin Hassan bin Ali Al Thani said on Saturday that the Gulf country was opposed to imposing transit fees, “but at times when they say they are going to use them for mine clearance or for temporary use of the fees, that is something that is negotiable, and it could help the Strait of Hormuz transit return to a normal stage.”

The U.S. official previously told The Associated Press that the United States had not found or destroyed any mines in the strait.

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