Iran fires on container ship in Strait of Hormuz

Tankers and bulk carriers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday (AP Photo)

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has opened fire on and damaged a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz as planned ceasefire talks in Pakistan failed to materialise.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said the attack happened at around 7.55am local time in the strait and targeted a container ship.

The UKMTO said no one was hurt and there was no environmental impact from the attack.

Iran’s semi-official Fars and Tasnim news agencies, believed to be close to the Guard, both reported on the attack, citing the UKMTO.

Fars went further to describe Iran as “lawfully enforcing” its control over the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20% of the world’s crude oil and natural gas once passed.

However, the strait had been considered an international waterway for the world’s shippers despite being in the territorial waters of both Iran and Oman.

It comes after the US seized an Iranian container ship after shooting it at the weekend and boarded an oil tanker associated with Iran’s oil trade in the Indian Ocean.