Iran: US forces attack Iranian container ship in Gulf of Oman

TEHRAN, April 20 (YPA) –The Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said that US forces had targeted the vessel in the Gulf of Oman, disabled its navigation system and boarded it after what it described as a ceasefire violation.

In a statement, Iranian military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari stated that the US forces opened fire at the vessel before boarding it.

Zolfaghari said: “The aggressive United States, by violating the ceasefire and engaging in maritime piracy, attacked one of Iran’s vessels after disabling its navigation system.”

He added that US forces boarded the vessel after deploying “a number of terrorist marines” onto it.

“We warn that Iran’s military forces will soon respond to and retaliate against this armed act of piracy by the US military,” he said.

Earlier, President Donald Trump announced that US forces have seized the Iranian-flagged cargo ship that he claimed was trying to get past a naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz.

In a social media post, Trump said Touska was warned by a US Navy guided missile destroyer in the Gulf of Oman to stop, but its “crew refused to listen”.

He added that the US Navy “stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engine room” and that US Marines had custody of the vessel, and were “seeing what’s on board”.

@E.Y.M