U.S. ally the United Arab Emirates said its air defences were engaging missile and drone threats from Iran early on Friday in a further test of the shaky, month-long ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran.
There were few details immediately available about the latest attack on the UAE, which came a day after the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire around the Strait of Hormuz, and as Washington awaited a response from Tehran to its proposal to end the conflict. Iran has often targeted the UAE and other Gulf countries that host U.S. bases since the war began on 28 February.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday three U.S. Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the strait, a conduit for around a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas flows that Iran has all but closedsince the conflict started.
"Three World Class American Destroyers just transited, very successfully, out of the Strait of Hormuz, under fire. There was no damage done to the three Destroyers, but great damage done to the Iranian attackers," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump later told reporters the ceasefire was still in effect and sought to play down the exchange.
"They trifled with us today. We blew them away," Trump said in Washington.
Iran's top joint military command accused the U.S. of violating the ceasefire by targeting an Iranian oil tanker and another ship, and of carrying out air attacks on civilian areas on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz and the nearby coastal areas of Bandar Khamir and Sirik on the mainland. The military said it responded by attacking U.S. military vessels east of the strait and south of the port of Chabahar.
A spokesperson for Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said the Iranian strikes inflicted "significant damage," but U.S. Central Command said none of its assets were hit.
Iran's Press TV later reported that, following several hours of fire, "the situation on Iranian islands and coastal cities by the Strait of Hormuz is back to normal now."
The two sides have occasionally exchanged gunfire since the ceasefire took effect on 7 April, with Iran hitting targets in Gulf countries including the UAE.
Oil prices rose in early trade in Asia on Friday, with Brent crude jumping above $100 a barrel after the latest clashes between the U.S. and Iran.
Trump suggested ongoing talks with Tehran remained on track despite Thursday's hostilities, telling reporters, "We're negotiating with the Iranians."
Before the latest strikes, the U.S. had floated a proposal that would formally end the conflict but did not address key U.S. demands that Iran suspend its nuclear work and reopen the strait.
Tehran said it had not yet reached a decision on the emerging plan.
Even so, Trump said Tehran had acknowledged his demand that Iran could never get a nuclear weapon, a prohibition he said was spelled out in the U.S. proposal.
"There's zero chance. And they know that, and they've agreed to that. Let's see if they are willing to sign it," Trump said.
Asked when any deal might be reached, Trump said, "It might not happen, but it could happen any day. I believe they want to deal more than I do."
The war has tested Trump's relationship with his U.S. base of supporters, after he had campaigned against involving the United States in foreign wars and promised to bring down fuel prices.
Average U.S. gasoline prices have climbed more than 40% since late February, rising by about $1.20 a gallon to more than $4, according to data from the American Automobile Association, as disruptions to oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz pushed crude oil prices higher.
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Efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war appeared to stall as the two sides exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A reported CIA assessment suggested Tehran could withstand a U.S. naval blockade for months despite mounting sanctions and renewed Gulf attacks.
Health authorities are monitoring a widening hantavirus alert after new suspected cases emerged in Spain and on a remote South Atlantic island, days after an outbreak on a cruise ship left three people dead and several others infected.
The U.S military said it carried out retaliatory strikes on Iran on Thursday (7 May). Meanwhile, Iran's Joint Military Command accused the U.S. of breaching the ceasefire, by striking an Iranian oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and launching attacks on several Iranian cities.
The U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz, though both sides signalled they did not want escalation. The clashes come as Washington awaits Tehran’s response to a proposed deal to end the war while leaving key disputes, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, unresolved for now.
Efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war appeared to stall as the two sides exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A reported CIA assessment suggested Tehran could withstand a U.S. naval blockade for months despite mounting sanctions and renewed Gulf attacks.
Singapore has isolated and is testing two of its residents who travelled aboard a cruise ship linked to a deadly hantavirus outbreak, the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) said on Thursday.
Countries worldwide sought to prevent the further spread of the hantavirus on Thursday, after an outbreak on a cruise ship, by tracking those who had disembarked before the virus was detected and anyone who had close contact with them since.
Efforts to end the U.S.-Iran war appeared to stall as the two sides exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz. A reported CIA assessment suggested Tehran could withstand a U.S. naval blockade for months despite mounting sanctions and renewed Gulf attacks.
The U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in and around the Strait of Hormuz, though both sides signalled they did not want escalation. The clashes come as Washington awaits Tehran’s response to a proposed deal to end the war while leaving key disputes, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, unresolved for now.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran remain far from a genuine ceasefire, as military posturing, sanctions and uncertainty over diplomacy continue to fuel fears of a broader regional confrontation.
Iran confirmed on Friday its Armed Forces responded to, what Tehran is calling, the U.S. Navy’s violation of the ceasefire. It said Iranian ships and civilian areas were attacked near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday evening.
The U.S. military said it carried out retaliatory strikes against Iran on Thursday (7 May), as Iran’s military leadership accused Washington of violating a Pakistani-mediated ceasefire agreed to back in April.
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