Iran and US ‘far’ from deal as ships warned over crossing: Live

Two gunboats from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.

It reported the tanker and crew as safe, without identifying the vessel or its destination.

TankerTrackers.com reported vessels were forced to turn around in the strait, including an Indian-flagged supertanker, after they were fired on by Iran.

Saturday’s developments came after US President Donald Trump said the blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the US that includes its nuclear program. Tehran had reopened the strait Friday to commercial vessels.

Iran blasts its own Foreign Minister over a ‘bad and incomplete tweet’ that created ambiguity during the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

In a tweet they said: “Our country’s Foreign Minister wrote in a tweet just minutes ago that, following the ceasefire in Lebanon, the Strait of Hormuz will be fully open for the passage of commercial ships for the remaining duration of the ceasefire period.”

Iran reversed its decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and fired on a tanker attempting to pass the waterway on Saturday. It also warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.

Confusion over the critical chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators expressed confidence a new deal was within reach.

Iran’s joint military command said on Saturday that “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state … under strict management and control of the armed forces.”

Good morning and welcome to the Daily Mail’s live blog.

We’ll be bringing all the latest updates on the Middle East and the Strait of Hormuz throughout the day.