Iran reports commercial vessel struck in Strait of Hormuz

Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu/Getty Images

Iranian state media has claimed an Iranian commercial vessel was struck in the Strait of Hormuz late Saturday, killing one person, amid an ongoing battle between the US and Iran for control over the crucial energy chokepoint.

The attack, which Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB said injured four others, took place early morning local time near Qeshm Island in the strait and comes a day before Tehran is set to meet regional leaders in Oman to discuss managing shipping traffic through the vital waterway.

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency quoted the Qeshm governor as blaming a “terrorist enemy” for the attack.

The US has not commented on the reported attack and CNN has reached out to US Central Command for comment.

US forces have previously struck Iranian-flagged vessels as it maintains a blockade of Iranian ports and faces the renewed threat of Iranian ballistic missiles launched at its warships.

Qeshm Island, which is about 14 miles from the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, is key to Iran asserting control over traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 million barrels of oil passed every day before the war. Traffic remains about 90% below pre-conflict levels.

Separately, another vessel was hit by an unknown projectile in the strait late on Saturday, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO).

The UKMTO said a fire broke out and that local authorities were helping evacuate crew members. It did not provided details of which state the vessel is registered.

Top diplomats from Gulf Arab states are expected to meet with Iran’s foreign minister in Oman on Monday to discuss the management of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Saturday.

However, Bahrain has said it will not attend, and it was not clear which other nations would be there.

Iran has been negotiating for months with Oman, which controls the opposite bank of the strait, over a deal that could govern shipping through it.

However, Iran has played down the prospects of a breakthrough. President Masoud Pezeshkian told broadcaster India Today TV on Saturday that: “The waterway would be opened up on the condition that the US will terminate its blockade.”

Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said on X: “As long as ⁠the American side does not accept all of Iran’s conditions, dialogue and negotiation are of no use.”

法特梅·巴赫拉米/阿纳多卢/盖蒂图片社

伊朗国家媒体声称，周六晚间，一艘伊朗商船在霍尔木兹海峡遭到袭击，造成一人死亡。目前，美国和伊朗正在为争夺这一关键能源咽喉要道的控制权而持续交战。

伊朗国家广播电视台IRIB称，此次袭击还造成四人受伤。袭击发生在当地时间清晨，地点位于海峡中的格什姆岛附近。就在一天后，德黑兰将在阿曼与地区领导人会面，讨论如何管理这条重要水道的航运。

伊朗官方通讯社伊通社援引格什姆省省长的话报道称，袭击事件是由“恐怖分子敌人”发动的。

美国尚未对此次袭击事件发表评论，CNN已联系美国中央司令部寻求置评。

由于美国对伊朗港口实施封锁，并面临伊朗向其军舰发射弹道导弹的新威胁，美军此前曾袭击过悬挂伊朗国旗的船只。

格什姆岛距离伊朗港口城市阿巴斯港约14英里，是伊朗控制霍尔木兹海峡交通的关键所在。战前，每天约有2000万桶石油经由霍尔木兹海峡运输。如今，该海峡的石油运输量仍比战前水平低约90%。

据英国海事贸易运营中心 (UKMTO) 称，周六晚些时候，另一艘船只在海峡中被不明飞行物击中。

英国海事运输办公室（UKMTO）表示，船上发生火灾，当地政府正在协助疏散船员。该办公室没有提供船舶注册地所在州的具体信息。

伊朗外交部发言人伊斯梅尔·巴盖伊周六表示，海湾阿拉伯国家的高级外交官预计将于周一在阿曼与伊朗外交部长会面，讨论霍尔木兹海峡海上交通管理问题。

然而，巴林已表示不会出席，目前还不清楚还有哪些国家会出席。

伊朗已与控制海峡对岸的阿曼进行了数月的谈判，商讨一项可能规范海峡航运的协议。

然而，伊朗方面淡化了取得突破的可能性。伊朗总统马苏德·佩泽什基安周六告诉印度今日电视台：“只有美国解除封锁，这条水道才会开放。”

伊朗议会国家安全委员会主席易卜拉欣·阿齐兹在X电视台表示：“只要美方不接受伊朗提出的所有条件，对话和谈判就毫无用处。”