A U.S. Central Command spokesman said most reported Iranian attempts to strike commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz have not hit their targets, while the strategic waterway remains open to shipping. His comments followed a separate CENTCOM report that a container ship was struck and later sank.
U.S. Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins told Fox News Digital that around 97% of ships seeking to cross the strait had done so without being hit by an Iranian projectile. He said U.S. forces had helped coordinate protection for thousands of vessels. Hawkins characterized Iran’s attacks on civilian mariners as unjustified and said they had not stopped traffic through the international waterway.
CENTCOM said the Singapore-flagged, Cyprus-owned GFS Pride was hit by an Iranian projectile on Wednesday. The vessel caught fire and sank while it was being towed toward shore. The supplied account does not give further details about casualties or the circumstances of the strike.
In a Friday update, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had repeatedly attacked merchant ships transiting the strait, and that civilian mariners had been killed. Cooper cited the International Maritime Organization as reporting that more than 20 civilian mariners had died in attacks on commercial shipping since February.
Cooper said about 400 merchant ships had crossed the Strait of Hormuz in the preceding seven days. He also reported that U.S. forces had helped Gulf partners ship more than 100 million barrels of crude oil during that period. The total amount of crude moved with U.S. assistance through the strait in recent months, he said, exceeded 1.3 billion barrels.
Hawkins described the U.S. military’s work in the region as involving both support for commercial shipping and a blockade against Iran. He said Iranian imports and exports had not been allowed without U.S. permission, except for humanitarian shipments. The source material does not independently detail how the blockade is implemented or define the humanitarian exceptions.
Hawkins said more than 50,000 U.S. service members were stationed across the Middle East. He also said U.S. forces were working with regional partners to defend their airspace against Iranian attacks. These descriptions and assessments were provided by U.S. military officials; the supplied material does not include a response from Iran or independent confirmation of the officials’ broader claims.
The Strait of Hormuz is a key route for commercial shipping and crude oil transport. The figures cited by CENTCOM indicate continued vessel traffic despite reported attacks, alongside the sinking of at least one ship identified in the account.
