Iran-US war latest: US claims it has sunk six Iranian small boats as tensions rise in Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said ⁠events in the Strait of ⁠Hormuz ​showed ⁠there was ⁠no military solution ​to ⁠the crisis, ‌adding that talks were ‌making progress with ‌Pakistan’s mediation while ⁠warning the United States and the United Arab Emirates against ‌being drawn ​into ‌a “quagmire ⁠by ill-wishers.”

South Korean shipper ⁠HMM said on Tuesday that the ⁠fire ​on ⁠its vessel ⁠in the Strait ​of ⁠Hormuz ‌has been extinguished.

The ship ‌will be ‌towed to ⁠a nearby port in Dubai, the company said, adding no ‌casualties have ​been ‌reported ⁠so ⁠far.

Oil prices jumped 6 per cent on Monday and stocks fell as Iran escalated its military campaign, hitting several ships in the Strait of Hormuz and ⁠setting a United Arab Emirates oil port ablaze.

Brent futures rose $6.27, or 5.8%, to settle at $114.44 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $4.48, or 4.4 per cent, to settle at $106.42. The moves came after US president Donald Trump pledged over the weekend that the US Navy would force the strait open, provoking the war’s biggest escalation since a ceasefire was declared four weeks ago.

The Strait of Hormuz, ⁠through which roughly a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil ​and ⁠gas normally flows, has been severely disrupted for two months.

US stocks fell broadly, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1.13 per cent, the S&P 500 0.41 per cent lower, and the Nasdaq Composite off 0.19 per cent.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.99 per cent. Germany’s 10-year bond ‌yield, the benchmark for the euro zone bloc, rose 5 basis points to 3.08 per cent. Markets in London were closed for a public holiday.

The United Arab Emirates defence ministry says it confronted 12 ballistic missiles, three cruise missiles and four drones fired by Iran on Monday.

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman condemned Iran’s “unjustified” attacks on the United Arab Emirates in a phone call with the UAE president, according to the Saudi state news agency.

The US.-led Joint Maritime Information Center had advised ships Monday to cross the strait in Oman’s waters, saying it had set up an “enhanced security area.”

Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, told reporters that American forces have successfully opened a passage through the strait that is free of Iranian mines. He said Iran launched multiple cruise missiles, drones and small boats at civilian ships under the U.S. military’s protection.

US military helicopters sank six of the small boats, Cooper said, adding that “each and every” threat had been defeated.

“The US commanders who are on the scene have all the authority necessary to defend their unit and to defend commercial shipping — as we saw and demonstrated earlier today,” Cooper said.

Trump had warned Sunday that Iranian efforts to halt passage through the strait “will, unfortunately, have to be dealt with forcefully.”

President ⁠Donald Trump said ⁠on ​Monday ⁠that ⁠he ​believes ⁠high ‌gasoline prices will ‌drop rapidly ‌once ⁠the Iran conflict is resolved.