Tanker Struck by Unidentified Projectile Near Hormuz as US-Iran Tensions Escalate

Vessel attacked in waters north of Fujairah in the UAE

UKMTO says tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile

Trump signals operation to help third-country ships leave the strait

A tanker near the Strait of Hormuz was struck by an unidentified projectile, adding to rising tensions in the waterway. The incident came as President Donald Trump said the US would launch an operation to help third-country ships trapped in the strait leave safely, while Iran warned such a move would amount to a ceasefire violation.

AFP reported on May 4, citing the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, that a tanker was hit the previous day by an unidentified projectile. UKMTO said it had received a report that the vessel had been struck.

The tanker was attacked about 145 kilometers (90 miles) north of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. All crew members were reported safe. Authorities are investigating the incident and advised ships passing through nearby waters to navigate with caution.

The strike came as negotiations between the US and Iran remained deadlocked after the Middle East ceasefire. Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, while the US has countered Iran with a maritime blockade, keeping the area on edge.

Trump wrote on Truth Social a day earlier that Project Freedom would begin on the morning of May 4, Middle East time. The operation is intended to help third-country ships and crews stranded in the Strait of Hormuz leave safely.

"Countries around the world have asked the United States whether we can help free their ships trapped in the Strait of Hormuz," Trump wrote.

He said those countries and vessels are "for the most part not involved" in the violent conflict unfolding in the Middle East and described them as "neutral and innocent bystanders."

Trump said he had told them the US would help move ships safely out of "this confined waterway" so they could continue business freely and smoothly "for Iran, the Middle East, and the United States."

He added that he had instructed his delegation to tell those countries the US would make every effort to get their ships and crews safely out of the strait.

Trump cast the operation as a humanitarian measure. "This ship movement is only meant to liberate people, companies and countries that have done nothing wrong," he wrote. "They are victims of the situation."

He also said many of the ships were running short of food and other supplies needed for large crews to remain healthy and sanitary on board. He called it a humanitarian gesture on behalf of the US, Middle Eastern countries and especially Iran.

At the same time, Trump said the US would respond forcefully if Iran interferes. He said the US delegation was having "very positive discussions" with Iran, but added that if the humanitarian process were obstructed "in any way," the US would have no choice but to respond strongly.

US Central Command said it would also support Project Freedom. In a post on X, it said support for the operation would begin on May 4 to restore freedom of navigation for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.

The operation will involve a guided-missile destroyer, more than 100 land- and sea-based aircraft, unmanned platforms and 15,000 troops.

Tensions in the Strait of Hormuz were already elevated. The Associated Press reported that a bulk carrier in the strait had also come under attack in what was believed to be an Iranian operation. During the Iran war, there were at least 24 attacks on civilian vessels in and around the strait.

About 2,000 ships are estimated to be trapped or stranded in the Strait of Hormuz and nearby waters. Roughly 20,000 seafarers are facing shortages of food and drinking water on board.

Trump's move was presented as humanitarian support, but it also appears aimed at weakening Iran's ability to enforce a closure of the Strait of Hormuz. If stranded tankers and merchant ships leave the passage, that could help stabilize global oil prices.

The key question is how Iran responds. If ships leave under US protection, Tehran may see that as a challenge to its control of the strait. If Iran moves to block them physically, the ceasefire now in place could come under renewed strain.

AFP reported that Ebrahim Azizi, chairman of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, wrote on X that any US intervention in the "new maritime order" of the Strait of Hormuz would be treated as a violation of the ceasefire.

Azizi also wrote that the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf would not be managed by Trump's "delusional posts."

Asked by reporters later that day about the situation in Iran, Trump said only that "it's going very well."

Hong Min-seong, Hankyung.com reporter mshong@hankyung.com