At least five Iranian civilians were killed when the US navy targeted and bombed two civilian cargo boats traveling from Oman to Iran on Monday, Iran’s Tasnim News Agency reported on Tuesday, May 5.
According to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards’ Corp (IRGC), the boats were carrying civilian goods from Oman towards the coast of Iran when they were targeted by the US navy.
The IRGC characterized the attack on the civilian vessels as a result of US fear and desperation after it failed to implement the US president’s so-called “Project Freedom” announced on Sunday.
Responding to the death of civilians, Iran vowed that “the Americans must definitely be held accountable for their crime in this regard.”
Iran also rejected the US claims of sinking several Iranian military boats as false.
“Instead of targeting IRGC speedboats, the US, in a blatant crime, opened fire on two small boats carrying civilian goods,” the IRGC said in the statement on Tuesday.
On Monday, US President Donald Trump had claimed that the US navy destroyed several Iranian fast boats in the Strait of Hormuz after they tried to disrupt the implementation of his “Project Freedom.”
US Central Command even claimed that helicopters were used to destroy the Iranian small boats.
On Sunday, Trump had announced that the US navy will start escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz from Monday in defiance of the Iranian blockade since early March, claiming several countries had requested him to do so. He had called the move a “humanitarian gesture.”
However, Iran had warned that any attempt to transit through the strait defying its blockade would be considered a violation of the ceasefire and be dealt with accordingly.
On Monday, after one US military ship tried to transit the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian forces fired two missiles on it, damaging it and forcing it to change course, Press TV reported.
Iran also dismissed the US claim that it helped a ship transit through the strait, saying no ships transited through the Strait of Hormuz without its prior approval.
It was also reported that Iran fired warning shots at some of the cargo ships in the Persian Gulf after the US attack on its civilian cargo boats.
No military solution
Reacting to the fresh developments in the Strait of Hormuz and threats issued by Trump, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reiterated on Tuesday that “there is no military solution to a political crisis” and the US should be wary of “being dragged back into quagmire by ill-wishers.”
He also called Washington’s attempts to escort ships through the strait a futile idea, saying “Project Freedom is Project Deadlock.”
Araghchi asked the US to pay more attention to the ongoing diplomatic process in Pakistan.
Araghchi extended the warnings to the UAE as well, after it accused Iran of attacking its oil port in Fujairah on Monday.
Iran denied its involvement in the incident in which a fire also broke out in Fujairah oil port on Monday, hours after the US attack on the Iranian ships.
Later, an unnamed Iranian official told local media that “what happened [in Fujairah] was a product of the US army’s adventurism to create a corridor for the illegal passage of ships through the prohibited waterways of the Strait of Hormuz.”
He asked the US military to take responsibility and stop “recklessly endangering regional stability” as any instability in the region will have effects on the economies around the globe.
On Tuesday, US Armed Forces announced that they have increased their military fortification of the southern Strait of Hormuz with the increased deployment of troops and military equipment in its attempts to implement Trump’s “Project Freedom.”
Meanwhile, Araghchi is traveling to China on Wednesday as part of Iran’s attempt to maintain broader diplomatic outreach with all its partners. He will meet his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, during the visit.
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