The US military attacked the Iranian-flagged ship Tosca, which was trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz despite the blockade. US President Donald Trump wrote on his social network Truth that “a cargo ship (…) weighs almost as much as an aircraft carrier that tried to break our naval blockade, and it ended badly for them.”
According to Trump, the ship’s crew ignored the warnings, so the American ship stopped them by making a hole in the engine room.
Iran, in turn, considered the American strike on a ship flying its flag a violation of the truce and “an act of maritime piracy.” It was stated in a statement by the military leadership Distributed Tasnim News Agency says that Iran, in response to the attack on the Tosca container ship coming from China, attacked several American warships with drones.
The ceasefire, which the United States and Iran agreed to in early April, expires on April 21.
Tehran announced on April 17 that it would open the Strait of Hormuz to commercial ships. But on April 18, he blocked him again. The Iranian authorities said that they would obstruct the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz as long as the United States closes Iranian ports.
A second round of negotiations was scheduled to be held in Pakistan (the first round was held on April 11 and 12 and ended without results). Trump announced on April 19 that the United States would send a delegation to Islamabad, but Iran announced on April 20 that it would not participate in the negotiations until the American blockade was lifted.