The US military has said it attacked an Iranian-flagged vessel in the Gulf of Oman, claiming it tried to breach the blockade of Iran’s coast.
US Central Command said an American fighter jet shot out the rudder of the Iran-flagged oil tanker after it was issued multiple warnings to stop.
The attack occurred as Iran and the US are officially in a ceasefire and as the two countries appear to be moving closer to an initial agreement to end the war.
Meanwhile, Israel struck Beirut’s southern suburbs for the first time since a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group was announced on April 17.
Despite these developments, US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he believed his country and Iran were close to reaching a deal, saying: "We’re dealing with people that want to make a deal very much, and we’ll see whether or not they can make a deal that’s satisfactory to us."
The president added: “And if they don’t agree, they’ll end up agreeing shortly thereafter.”
The attack on the Iran-flagged vessel was announced after the US paused its operation to protect stranded commercial vessels through the Strait, with Trump saying it was because the two sides were close to a deal.
Iran also floated the idea of allowing safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said the strait could reopen after the end of what it described as “threats from aggressors."
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