The US opened fire on a Panamanian-flagged ship in the Strait of Hormuz which attempted to enter Donald Trump’s blockade.
According to US officials, a helicopter fired at the ship’s rudder after its crew ignored warnings from American soldiers enforcing the blockade, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Security sources said the container ship, known as the Vela Nova, was struck by a missile in an attack off Pakistan while sailing into the Gulf of Oman, which is at the opening of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The missile struck the vessel, causing a fire that was subsequently extinguished,” the security source said, adding that all 17 crew members were present. The ship was believed to have been hit 71 nautical miles off Pakistan’s coast.
The US has imposed its fresh blockade on Iranian ports since July following Tehran’s attacks on vessels trying to pass through the key global waterway.
The blockade was first imposed in mid-April before it was lifted in mid-June, with 60 days for negotiations, but talks stalled as fighting over the Strait has intensified and the blockade was reimplemented on July 13.
There were no immediate reports of casualties in the incident on Tuesday, and a US official said the ship appeared to be attempting to transfer its crew to another civilian vessel after the attack.
It would be the 12th vessel attacked by US forces since its blockade was announced in April and the third since the blockade was reimposed on July 14.
The US has often redirected commercial vessels away from the blockade, according to US Central Command. However, it has only fired on four ships and boarded two others as part of the enforcement.
The first reported deaths from the American effort to constrict the Strait of Hormuz came in June, when three Indian sailors were killed in a US operation to enforce its blockade of Iran, according to the Wall Street Journal.