US and Iran exchange fire as Trump says ceasefire remains in place

WASHINGTON/TEHRAN: The United States and Iran traded fire on Thursday in what was described as the most serious challenge so far to their month-old ceasefire, though both sides later signalled they did not want the confrontation to widen.

The latest exchange came as Washington was waiting for Tehran’s response to a US proposal aimed at halting the fighting while leaving unresolved, for now, major disputes including Iran’s nuclear programme.

Iran’s military said the US struck two vessels entering the Strait of Hormuz and also carried out attacks on Iranian territory. The US military, however, said its action came in response to Iranian attacks.

US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire was still holding and sought to minimise the significance of the incident. Speaking to reporters while inspecting renovation work at the Lincoln Memorial’s reflecting pool in Washington, he said, “They trifled with us today. We blew them away.”

Claims and counterclaims over the exchange

Iran’s top joint military command accused the US of breaching the ceasefire by targeting an Iranian oil tanker and another ship, and by launching air strikes on civilian areas on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz as well as nearby mainland coastal areas including Bandar Khamir and Sirik.

The Iranian military said it responded by attacking US 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 operation caused “significant damage”.

US Central Command rejected that account and said none of its assets had been struck. Centcom said Iran used missiles, drones and small boats in an attack directed at three Navy destroyers. The US then hit missile and drone sites and other locations in response.

“Centcom does not seek escalation but remains positioned and ready to protect American forces,” it said in a statement.

Iran also warned it would answer any future attack. According to state television, a military spokesperson said, “(The) US and its allies must know that Iran will respond forcefully and without the slightest hesitation to any act of aggression or attack.”

Iran’s Press TV later reported that after several hours of exchanges, “the situation on Iranian islands and coastal cities by the Strait of Hormuz is back to normal now”.

The two countries have exchanged fire sporadically since the ceasefire took effect on April 7. On Monday, the US military said it had destroyed six Iranian small boats and intercepted Iranian cruise missiles and drones as Tehran tried to obstruct a US naval effort to reopen shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump says talks are continuing

Despite Thursday’s hostilities, Trump said contacts with Tehran were continuing.

Before the latest exchange, the US had put forward a proposal that would formally end the conflict, but it did not address key American demands that Iran halt its nuclear work and reopen the strait, which before the war handled one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supply.

Tehran said it had not yet made a decision on the emerging proposal. Even so, Trump said Iran had accepted his demand that it could never obtain a nuclear weapon, adding that the condition was included in the US 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 an agreement 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.”

Responding to a question about Project Freedom, Trump also said Pakistan had asked the United States “not to do it”. He added, “Pakistan has been fantastic. Their leaders have been fantastic; the field marshal and the prime minister,” and said, “We’ll go back to it if we have to. They asked us not to do it during the negotiations.”