Two US Navy guided-missile destroyers have successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Arabian Gulf, after navigating sustained and coordinated Iranian barrage, marking the opening phase of Washington’s “Project Freedom” operation.
The USS Truxtun and USS Mason, supported by Apache helicopters and other aircraft, yesterday came under fire from small boats, missiles, and drones during the passage.
However, neither vessel was hit, with defensive systems intercepting or deterring all incoming threats. Meanwhile, the conflict has spread beyond the strait. South Korea has confirmed that an explosion and fire broke out aboard a South Korean-operated bulk carrier anchored near the waterway. All 24 crew members on board are reported safe.
In Oman, two residents were injured after a residential building housing employees of a company in the Bukha governorate was struck. In the United Arab Emirates, Iranian missiles and drones targeted the emirate of Fujairah, causing a fire at an oil industry zone, a key facility that enables the UAE to export crude oil without using the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command chief Admiral Bradley Cooper says American forces have sunk six Iranian fast boats that were attempting to target commercial vessels in the Strait, while Iranian cruise missiles aimed at US Navy destroyers were intercepted by US air power.
US President Donald Trump has called on South Korea to join the mission, a request Seoul says it will review. Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the developments show there is no military solution to what he described as a political crisis.“Iran’s foreign ministry told Gulf states that its actions were defensive , while also warning them not to let the U.S. or Israel use their territory against Iran.
President Trump, however, warned that Iran would be decimated if US Navy ships come under attack, even as he stopped short of formally declaring the ceasefire over.
South Korea’s ministry of oceans and fisheries ordered nearby South Korean vessels to relocate to safer waters and convened an emergency meeting, while Seoul faces growing pressure from Washington to formally join Project Freedom – a step that risks straining its relations with Iran and drawing it deeper into a volatile regional conflict. Fujairah’s strategic importance to the day’s events cannot be overstated.
The emirate sits on the UAE’s eastern coast on the Gulf of Oman, beyond the strait entirely, and a pipeline running from Abu Dhabi’s oilfields to its port has allowed the UAE to keep some crude flowing to world markets despite the blockade.
Striking it signals a clear Iranian intent to close off that alternative route as well.While day one of Project Freedom was described as a tactical success by US commanders, restoring the pre-conflict flow of around 120 vessels a day through the strait remains a distant prospect as long as Iran continues to present a credible threat to commercial shipping.