Washington: The US military said Wednesday that it fired on an Iranian oil tanker as President Donald Trump sought to pressure Tehran into reaching a deal to end the war.
An American fighter jet shot out the rudder of the tanker in the Gulf of Oman as it tried to breach the US military’s blockade of Iran’s ports, US Central Command said in a social media post.
The attack occurred as Iran and the US are officially in a ceasefire and as the two countries appeared to be moving closer to an initial agreement to end the war. Trump threatened Tehran with a new wave of bombing if a deal is not reached that includes opening the critical Strait of Hormuz.
Trump posted on social media Wednesday that the two-month war could soon end and that oil and natural gas shipments disrupted by the conflict could restart. But he said that depends on Iran accepting a reported agreement that the president did not detail.
“If they don’t agree, the bombing starts,” Trump wrote.
Israel hits Beirut for first time since last month’s ceasefire
In other developments, 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.
Fighting has continued since then in southern Lebanon.
The last strikes in Beirut were on April 8, when a series of massive Israeli strikes, including in central Beirut, killed more than 350 people.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Wednesday’s strike, which came without warning, targeted a commander in Hezbollah’s Radwan Force. Hezbollah did not immediately comment.
Trump made his latest comments after he suspended a short-lived US effort to force open a safe passage for commercial ships through the strait, a vital waterway through which major oil and gas supplies, fertiliser and other petroleum products passed before the war.
Iran’s effective closure of the strait has sent fuel prices skyrocketing, rattled the global economy and put enormous economic pressure on countries, including major powers such as China.
China’s foreign minister called for a comprehensive ceasefire Wednesday after meeting in Beijing with Iran’s top envoy. Wang Yi said his country was “deeply distressed” by the conflict, which began February 28 when the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran.
China’s close economic and political ties to Tehran give it a unique position of influence. The Trump administration is pressing China to use that relationship to urge the Islamic Republic to open the strait.
