Ship hit in Hormuz as Iran’s top negotiator says strait to stay shut

Iran’s top negotiator said the Strait of Hormuz would not open until the US lifted its naval blockade and released frozen Iranian assets, as a ship was hit by a projectile in the strait with a crew member reported as a casualty.

Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Tuesday that the crucial waterway will remain shut to cargo traffic until Washington meets Tehran’s demands.

“I want to state clearly that the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the American commitments stipulated in the memorandum of understanding… are implemented,” Ghalibaf said in a speech broadcast on state-run TV.

He listed the end to the blockade, the lifting of oil sanctions and unfreezing of Iran’s assets abroad among Tehran’s demands.

Meanwhile, an unidentified projectile damaged the engine room of a ship and “resulted in a crew casualty” early Tuesday morning as the vessel was trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman, the UKMTO said, citing a report from the company’s security office.

Read more: Euronews