The volatile Middle East cease-fire faced uncertainty Tuesday after the United States and Iran launched new attacks while vying for control of the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. military said Monday it destroyed six Iranian small boats, as well as cruise missiles and drones, after President Donald Trump sent the navy to escort stranded tankers through the strait in a campaign he called "Project Freedom."
Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said in a social media post Tuesday that the security of shipping and energy transit had been threatened by breaches of the four-week-old ceasefire by the U.S. and its allies.
The strait is a vital thoroughfare for global supplies of oil, fertilizer and other commodities that has been virtually closed since the U.S. and Israel began attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, causing price rises around the world.
Several merchant ships in the Gulf reported explosions or fires Monday and an oil port in the United Arab Emirates, which hosts a large U.S. military base, was set ablaze by Iranian missiles.
