U.S. President Donald Trump accused Iran of violating the ceasefire agreement on Friday after Iran attacked a cargo vessel off the coast of Oman.
In a post on social media, Trump appeared to be referring to Iran’s attack on Thursday against a Singapore-flagged vessel, which prompted the United Nations maritime organization to halt its evacuation of ships and sailors that have been stranded in the Persian Gulf since the start of the conflict.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran shot at least four one-way attack drones at ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump wrote. “One of the drones solidly hit the upper deck of a large and very expensive cargo-carrying ship. Damage was done, but the ship was able to proceed on its way. We knocked down three other drones.”
“Obviously, this is a foolish violation of our ceasefire agreement,” he stated.
Trump gave no indication that the United States intends to retaliate for the attack.
Arsenio Dominguez, the head of the U.N. International Maritime Organization, said at a press conference on Friday that the ship, the Ever Lovely, was not “following the evacuation framework” that the United Nations had established and that the vessel was not in contact with authorities in Oman.
He said the global body was still investigating the incident.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, issued a warning on Friday to any vessel that does not agree to Iran’s interpretation of the U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding regarding shipping through the vital energy corridor.
“Safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, with ambiguous arrangements, parallel routes or decision-making outside of Iran’s considerations as the coastal state, cannot be guaranteed,” he wrote.
“Any credible framework must be based on coordination with Iran and the provisions of paragraph five of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding,” he stated. “Otherwise, the outcome will be the suspension of the designated parallel route.”
