Iranian Revolutionary Guards Reportedly Strike Cargo Ship Near Strait of Hormuz

Two senior U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards attacked a Singapore-flagged cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz area on Thursday, near the coast of Oman. The British maritime trade agency UKMTO said the vessel’s bridge was damaged, but no casualties were reported.

The strike came hours after the Guards’ naval forces warned ships not to use routes in the strait that had not been approved by Tehran. According to the report, the attack is the first major test of a new 60-day agreement between the United States and Iran to reopen the vital shipping lane and end the fighting.

Under that arrangement, Iran is supposed to ensure safe passage for commercial ships in return for the lifting of an American blockade on Iranian ports. The report said Washington also this week waived sanctions on the sale of Iranian oil, allowing Tehran to sell oil in dollars for the first time in decades.

The International Maritime Organization said two days before the attack that it was coordinating an evacuation route for hundreds of ships still stuck in the Persian Gulf, with help from Iran, Oman, other coastal states and the United States. After the incident, the U.N. agency suspended the evacuation plan, saying it needed to reconfirm safety guarantees for ships on the evacuation list and others in the area. IMO also said the attacked ship was not sailing under its evacuation mechanism. The Guards had previously called the IMO route “completely unacceptable and totally dangerous” and urged all vessels to coordinate passage with Iran.