US-Iran ceasefire on brink as forces trade fire in Strait of Hormuz

Trump threatens to blow off Iran from face of earth if it attacks US ships: US forces destroys six Iranian fast boats: Tehran accuses US of killing five civilians: UAE hit by barrage of missiles and drones: Oil prices jump: UK, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia call for de-escalation: Iran's top negotiator warns Tehran 'not even started' in Hormuz standoff

Published: 08:49 AM, 5 May, 2026
Featured News, Middle East
US-Iran ceasefire on brink as forces trade fire in Strait of Hormuz
Caption: Representational image.
AFP

A ceasefire between Iran and the United States was teetering Monday as the two countries traded fire over the strategic Strait of Hormuz and the United Arab Emirates reported attacks for the first time since the truce was declared nearly a month ago.

A day after President Donald Trump announced an operation to escort trapped vessels through the strait, Fox News quoted him as threatening that Iran would be "blown off the face of the earth" if it attacks US ships.

Iran appeared undaunted as it vowed to keep exerting control over the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which one-fifth of the world's oil flowed before the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.

A US admiral said US forces sank six small Iranian ships. The Islamic republic on Tuesday denied any combat vessels had been hit, but accused the US of killing civilians on boats.

US forces "attacked two small boats carrying people... they martyred five civilian passengers and must be held accountable for their crime," Iranian state TV posted on Telegram.

The UAE, a close US ally and key Arab partner of Israel, said it came under a barrage of missiles and drones from Iran. "These attacks represent a dangerous escalation and an unacceptable transgression, posing a direct threat to the state's security, stability, and the safety of its territories," the UAE's foreign ministry said in a statement.

A strike targeting an energy installation in the emirate of Fujairah injured three Indian nationals, UAE authorities said.

Two people were also injured when a residential building was hit in Oman's Bukha along the coastline of the Strait of Hormuz, state media reported.

- Return to war footing -

Oil prices climbed further after the UAE attack, with the benchmark international contract Brent crude for July delivery jumping more than five percent.

The soaring energy costs for consumers since the war have caused economic pain around the world and created a political headache for Trump months before congressional elections.

In Israel, a military official said forces were on high alert.

The UAE ordered all schools to return to remote learning for the rest of the week.

According to the UAE defence ministry, four cruise missiles were launched from Iran, with three successfully shot down and another falling into the water.

Iran also fired drones at a tanker affiliated with its state-owned oil giant ADNOC, UAE authorities said.

A senior Iranian military official did not deny the strikes but said that the Islamic republic had "no pre-planned programme to attack the oil facilities in question".

"What happened was the product of the US military's adventurism to create a passage for ships to illegally pass through" the Strait of Hormuz, the official said, according to state television.

"The US military must be held accountable for it," the official added.

But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi -- seen as a moderate in the cleric-run state in which top leaders have been killed by Israel -- said that the clashes in the strait showed there was "no military solution to a political crisis" and pointed to Pakistan's efforts to keep mediating.

"The US should be wary of being dragged back into quagmire by ill-wishers. So should the UAE. Project Freedom is Project Deadlock," he wrote on X.

- US flexes muscle in strait -

Trump has repeatedly demanded that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz -- which was open before the war and which Tehran considers a main point of leverage.

On Sunday, Trump announced what he called "Project Freedom" to guide ships from neutral countries out of the Gulf, saying it was a humanitarian effort to help their stranded crews.

Much remained unclear about how the plan would operate and how the United States would assist.

US Central Command said Monday that guided-missile destroyers had transited Hormuz and that, as a first step in "Project Freedom", two US-flagged merchant vessels had travelled out of the Gulf.

But Iran's Revolutionary Guards denied the US statement, saying: "No commercial vessels or oil tankers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the past few hours."

Seoul said on Monday that an "explosion and fire" had struck a South Korean ship in the strait.

- Trump plays down impact -

Trump had appeared to play down the Iranian strikes, writing on social media that Iran had "taken some shots" but that it caused little damage.

As of April 29, more than 900 commercial vessels were located in the Gulf, according to maritime intelligence firm AXSMarine.

Diplomacy between Washington and Tehran has been deadlocked since the ceasefire, with the United States twice aborting plans for senior officials to attend new talks in Pakistan and Trump voicing doubt about an Iranian proposal.

Another ceasefire has also come under strain, in Lebanon, which Israel has heavily bombed and invaded with ground troops in response to fire into Israel by Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

The Israeli strikes have killed more than 2,700 people, according to Lebanon's health ministry.

Hezbollah and Israeli troops clashed in southern Lebanon on Monday, with Israeli troops reporting moderate injuries to two of its soldiers.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called for a security deal and an end to Israeli attacks before any meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a potentially historic encounter which Trump has proposed to take place this month at the White House.

- Two injured in Oman -
Two people were injured in Oman, on its coast along the Strait of Hormuz, when a residential building was targeted, state media reported.

Two expatriate workers were moderately hurt and four vehicles were damaged in the strike on Bukha,  the Oman News Agency said.

- Growing calls for de-escalation -

The United Kingdom, France, Germany and Saudi Arabia called for de-escalation in the Middle East following reported attacks on the United Arab Emirates.

Britain's Prime Minister said that the "escalation must cease", while German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote on X that "Tehran must return to the negotiating table and stop holding the region and the world hostage."

- Iran 'not even started' -

Iran's chief negotiator in talks with the United States warned on Tuesday that his country has "not even started" in its standoff over the Strait of Hormuz.

"We know full well that the continuation of the status quo is intolerable for America; whilst we have not even started yet," Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a post on X.

Ghalibaf, who is also the speaker in Iran's parliament, said the actions of the US and its allies had put shipping security at risk, but said their "malign presence will diminish".

- Maersk sails through Hurmuz -
Denmark's freight giant Maersk said one of its ships had sailed through the Strait of Hormuz under US escort, adding the transit was completed "without incident".

- India criticises strike on UAE -
India condemned a drone strike on an energy facility in the United Arab Emirates in which three Indians were injured, urging uninterrupted access to the Strait of Hormuz.

- 'No plan' to attack UAE: Iran -
Iran had "no pre-planned programme" to attack oil facilities in the United Arab Emirates, Iranian state TV quoted a military official as saying, after the UAE blamed the Islamic republic for a drone strike at an energy installation in Fujairah

"What happened was the product of the US military's adventurism to create a passage for ships to illegally pass through" the Strait of Hormuz, the official said. "The US military must be held accountable for it."

Categories : Featured News, Middle East Tags :

AFP

Agence France-Presse is an international news agency.