Iran has not directly claimed responsibility for the attacks, but has implied involvement. The tanker that caught fire had ignored warnings, Iranian state television said on Monday, noting that it was transporting gas from Qatar.
If Iran was involved, the attacks could be considered a violation of the ceasefire agreed to in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the U.S. and Iran. It stipulates that the strait would reopen, toll free, for 60 days. In response to its signing in June, commercial traffic quickly resumed, going from near zero to over 20 crossings a day, according to the maritime tracking platform Winward.
Negotiations to advance the MOU are currently stalled amid a six-day period of mourning for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes that started the war on Feb. 28.
However, Trump said on Monday that Iran would need to “make a deal, or we’re going to finish the job.”
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