American ships cross Strait as U.S. boosts naval presence

The U.S. military said two U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers had entered the Gulf to break an Iranian blockade and that two U.S. ships had transited the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran said it had prevented a U.S. warship entering the Gulf.

U.S. Central Command said its forces were supporting President Donald Trump's "Project Freedom", which aims to "guide out" commercial ships stranded in the Gulf by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, and were enforcing a blockade of Iranian ports.

The intervention appeared to raise the risk of a direct confrontation between the U.S. and Iran in a waterway that usually carries a fifth of the world's seaborne oil and gas but has been blocked for two months as a result of the war.

CENTCOM said two U.S.-flagged merchant vessels had crossed through the strait as the U.S. destroyers operated in the Gulf, adding: "American forces are actively assisting efforts to restore transit for commercial shipping."

Earlier on Monday, Iran said it had forced a U.S. warship to turn back from the Strait of Hormuz, although CENTCOM quickly denied an Iranian news report that the ship had been hit by missiles.

A senior Iranian official told Reuters Iran had fired a warning shot and that it was unclear whether the warship had been damaged.

Oil prices had jumped 5% on reports of the warship being turned back, but by 1220 GMT were up around 2.5%. [O/R]

The shipping industry remains to be convinced that the vital oil route, whose closure has damaged global business and trade, is safe to use, with little sign of progress towards a negotiated resolution of Washington's conflict with Iran. [O/R]

Iran's navy said it had prevented "American-Zionist" warships entering the Strait area by issuing a "swift and decisive warning".

Iran's semi-official Fars news agency said two missiles had hit the warship near the port of Jask at the southern entrance to the strait. CENTCOM denied that any warship had been struck.

Trump gave few details of his plan to aid ships and their crews who have been confined to the vital waterway and are running low on food and other supplies.

"We have told these Countries that we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business," Trump said in a post on his Truth Social site on Sunday.

IRANIAN MILITARY'S WARNING

In response to Trump's announcement, Iran's unified command told commercial ships and oil tankers to refrain from any movement that was not coordinated with Iran's military.

"We have repeatedly said the security of the Strait of Hormuz is in our hands and that the safe passage of vessels needs to be coordinated with the armed forces," Ali Abdollahi, head of the forces' unified command, said in the statement.

"We warn that any foreign armed forces, especially the aggressive U.S. Army, will be attacked if they intend to approach and enter the Strait of Hormuz."

Iran has blocked nearly all shipping into and out of the Gulf apart from its own since the start of the war, sending oil prices soaring by 50% or more.

CENTCOM said it would support Trump's "Project Freedom" with 15,000 military personnel and more than 100 land- and sea-based aircraft, plus warships and drones.

"Our support for this defensive mission is essential to regional security and the global economy as we also maintain the naval blockade," Admiral Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, said in a statement.