US denies Iranian claim that it hit American warship trying to enter Strait of Hormuz — BBC News

[0:00] Hello, I'm Lucy Hockings. Welcome to BBC News Now. [0:03] Iran says US forces will be attacked if they enter the Strait of Hormuz. [0:07] The Iranian threat followed President Trump's message on social media [0:11] that the American military would help guide ships through this vital waterway. [0:16] An estimated 20,000 seafarers on 2,000 ships have been stuck in the strait [0:21] since the US-Iran war began back in February. [0:24] We've been hearing from President Trump on Truth Social. [0:26] He has written, for the good of Iran, the Middle East and the United States, [0:31] we have told these countries that we will guide their ships safely out of these restricted waterways [0:37] so that they can freely and ably get on with their business. [0:41] He added, if in any way this humanitarian process is interfered with, [0:45] that interference will unfortunately have to be dealt with forcefully. [0:49] We had a very quick response from Iran. [0:52] This statement was released. [0:54] We warned that any foreign armed forces, especially the aggressive US military, [0:59] if they intend to approach or enter the Strait of Hormuz, will be targeted and attacked. [1:06] And in the last hour, reports in Iran's state media that two missiles were fired at a US warship [1:14] intending to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. [1:17] There has been no independent verification of this story. [1:20] It's very, very unclear right now what has actually happened. [1:23] But we hope to shed some light on that because to try and make sense of it all [1:26] is Baran Obasi from BBC Persian, who is with me now. [1:30] State media, not that reliable, but what exactly do we know [1:34] and what is being said about what's just happened in the Strait of Hormuz? [1:36] So even the state media are not telling us the same account of what's happened. [1:43] The state TV is saying that a US warship had been turned away from the Strait of Hormuz, [1:50] but was prevented from entering the Strait of Hormuz after warning shots were fired by Iranian forces. [1:57] But the first news agency that is affiliated to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the IRGC, [2:03] that has been running the war effort, is saying that a warship had entered the Strait [2:08] and two missiles had been fired at it after it ignored warnings. [2:14] And the missiles had hit the warship and it was forced to turn back and leave the Strait. [2:20] So we have two different accounts. [2:22] And as you said, the state media are not very reliable. [2:25] The first news agency had made false claims before about what's happening in the Strait of Hormuz. [2:32] It had claimed that US strike carrier group, USS Abraham Lincoln, [2:37] had been drowned several times during the war before the ceasefire. [2:42] So it's not very reliable. [2:44] But we could say maybe some incident happened in the Strait of Hormuz. [2:49] Some warning shots were fired. [2:52] But it's very unclear. [2:53] I need to say that the US website Axios has also talked to a... [2:58] So I've got a really important clarification. [3:00] We have just had some social media comment from CENTCOM who says no US Navy ships have been struck. [3:07] So as far as the Americans are concerned, they've obviously seen this claim from Iranian state media [3:12] and US Central Command have now released this. [3:15] No US Navy ships have been struck. [3:17] US forces are supporting Project Freedom, which Aaron will talk about in a moment, [3:22] and enforcing the naval blockade on Iranian ports. [3:26] So we're getting two very different versions of what has happened in the Strait of Hormuz. [3:31] Can I ask you a question about who could have fired these missiles? [3:35] Because President Trump often says, you know, the Iranian Navy is at the bottom of the sea. [3:40] There is no Iranian Navy. [3:41] Would this have then been, if it's happened, IRGC forces? [3:45] Yes, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps are in charge at the moment, [3:50] not just the war effort, but also in charge of the running of the country. [3:53] And when missiles are fired, they are by the IRGC naval forces. [3:59] They might have been degraded massively, but they still exist. [4:02] And they have shown that they are still capable of striking ships that go through the Strait of Hormuz. [4:10] They have issued warnings saying that any ships that want to go through the Strait have to ask permission from the IRGC forces, [4:18] have to go through a specific route that they have announced today, designated by the IRGC, if they want to be safe. [4:26] Otherwise, if they break this pattern, then they will be fired upon. [4:30] What do we know about what is happening in the Strait in terms of how unsafe it actually is, [4:37] how many mines are in there, what seafarers face if they try to navigate through here? [4:42] So the Iranian forces have said that they have planted mines in the Strait. [4:47] They have not said how many. [4:49] But they have said that if they go through the route that is designated by them, they will be safe, the ships will be safe. [4:58] Iran is blockading the Strait by just threatening to strike ships. [5:03] It doesn't have to actually do that. [5:05] But by threatening them, it prevents ships from going through the Strait. [5:09] On the other hand, the U.S. has blockaded Iran's ports that has put a lot of pressure on Iranians economically [5:18] because they cannot be exporting their oil and also empty tankers cannot come in to store the oil that is being produced by Iran. [5:30] Baran, I want to ask you more in a moment about what's happening diplomatically. [5:33] But let's just look at this process of guiding ships through the Strait of Hormuz, [5:38] how it could possibly work in practice, because that seems incredibly unclear at the moment. [5:43] Kevin Iyer is a retired U.S. Navy captain who commanded three warship cruisers. [5:48] And he told us more about how the U.S. might guide these stranded ships out of the Strait of Hormuz. [5:54] CENTCOM, the combat commander of the area, spoke of guided missile destroyers and aircraft. [6:01] But no one has said emphatically or specifically that U.S. Navy units will actively escort neutral ships out of the Strait. [6:14] It's unclear whether the intention is to guide and coordinate or to actually go in and do a classic convoy situation. [6:24] The difference between these two things is the difference between night and day. [6:28] The active escort is the most dangerous and fraught solution. [6:37] It means sending U.S. warships into the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran still has a kind of control over. [6:48] And so, depending upon what Iran selects to do, should U.S. Navy warships move into that area, all depends on that. [6:58] Because if they have a number of anti-ship ballistic missiles remaining, that's open source reporting, [7:08] they might have as many as a thousand anti-ship drones. [7:14] And they also have hundreds of fast patrol boats, which can be armed with rockets. [7:20] Now, these Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are the most sophisticated warships ever created in the world. [7:27] They can do it, but it comes at significant risk. [7:32] And where are we at with diplomacy right now? [7:35] Well, Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson has told state television that Tehran has submitted a 14-point proposal focused on ending the war. [7:43] He said Washington had responded through a message passed via Pakistani mediators. [7:49] Talks between Iran and the U.S. have stalled over how to end the two-month conflict. [7:54] The spokesperson said the U.S. needs to scale back its demands on the Islamic Republic. [7:59] A key sticking point, as we've been talking about, is Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz since U.S. and Israeli strikes. [8:05] On February the 28th, major flows of oil, gas and fertiliser have been disrupted, [8:11] while Washington has also imposed a blockade on Iranian ports. [8:16] And, Barron, surely another key sticking point as well is the nuclear programme. [8:20] Any sign that Iran might put that back on the table? [8:23] Because so far they've said, no, we want it to remain separate for the moment. [8:26] They, from what we're hearing from unconfirmed reports, officially they say that the enrichment issue has to be negotiated about after the war is ended. [8:39] They want guarantees, they want the formation of an international body that would guarantee that the war would not happen again. [8:46] And 30 days during which both sides gradually open the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. would gradually lift Iran's blockade of ports. [8:56] And then, after that, if this is settled, then Iran would talk about its nuclear issue. [9:04] The problem is that there is no sign that Iran would agree to end enrichment. [9:11] And that is why the United States has been demanding, as well as the Strait of Hormuz, Iran wants to keep control of the Strait of Hormuz. [9:20] It says that it is providing security to ships that are going through the strait, and therefore it is entitled to tolls from ships that are going through. [9:31] So this is, again, something that is unlikely to be accepted by the United States. [9:36] Both sides seem to be sticking to maximalist demands. [9:41] The U.S. is also saying that it will not lift the blockade of Iran's ports as long as a deal is not reached. [9:47] So it's very unlikely, if both sides do not make huge compromises, it's unlikely that they will come to an agreement. [9:56] And Iran seems to think that it has the upper hand. [10:00] Yesterday, the IRGC, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Court, issued a statement saying that Donald Trump is stuck between a bad deal or a return to an impossible war. [10:10] So it seems that by keeping control of the Strait of Hormuz and holding the world's economy hostage, it believes that it is holding the cause at the moment, and it's not willing to compromise. [10:24] Barron, thank you. [10:25] Another key part of the picture, of course, is what is happening in Lebanon, with Iran also always saying that that ceasefire there needs to hold. [10:33] And we now know that the Israeli military today again has issued an urgent evacuation warning to residents of 11 towns and villages in the south of the country. [10:43] It is continuing its strikes against Hezbollah. [10:46] Israeli strikes killed at least seven people in southern Lebanon on Saturday. [10:50] This is despite this nominal ceasefire agreement that is in place at the moment, but it is repeatedly being broken. [10:58] Hezbollah has also continued its drone and rocket attacks on Israeli troops in Lebanon and northern Israel.