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The destroyers USS Truxtun and USS Mason of the United States Navy crossed the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Persian Gulf unscathed, despite facing a coordinated Iranian attack with missiles, drones, and small boats, according to defense officials cited by CBS News.
Iran launched what officials described as a "sustained barrage" against the two warships and the commercial vessels accompanying them, but no projectiles hit their targets.
Defensive measures, bolstered by Apache helicopters and other aircraft, intercepted or deterred every incoming threat, according to U.S. military sources.
Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), confirmed that Iran launched an attack against naval and commercial vessels crossing the strait, leading the U.S. to destroy six Iranian Revolutionary Guard fast boats that were attempting to interfere with the passage.
Iran denied the destruction of its vessels and described its actions as "warning shots" to enforce its control over the strait.
The transit occurred within the framework of the Freedom Project, launched by President Trump on Sunday to escort the hundreds of merchant vessels stranded in the Persian Gulf since the closure of the strait.
CENTCOM described the operation as "inherently defensive" and noted that two U.S.-flagged commercial vessels successfully transited the strait on the same day.
On that same Monday, Iran launched missiles and drones against the United Arab Emirates and attacked an empty tanker belonging to the state company ADNOC that was attempting to cross the strait, without causing any injuries.
Iranian media claimed to have struck a U.S. warship with missiles, a version that CENTCOM categorically denied.
Ebrahim Azizi, president of the Iranian National Security Commission, warned that "any U.S. interference in the new maritime regime of the Strait of Hormuz will be considered a violation of the ceasefire."
The ceasefire, mediated by Pakistan and in effect since April 8, has been questioned by multiple incidents since its implementation, including attacks on European vessels and the downing of a U.S. drone.
The Strait of Hormuz is a vital artery of global trade: 25% of the oil traded by sea passes through it.
Since Iran closed it on March 4 with mines, drones, and missiles, the price of Brent crude skyrocketed from $67 to over $126 per barrel, with around 2,000 ships and 20,000 sailors stranded in the Gulf.
Parallel to the military tension, diplomatic negotiations continue: Iran sent the U.S. a 14-point peace plan on May 1, structured in three phases that include the gradual reopening of the strait and the deactivation of mines, although it excludes the issue of missiles.
Trump stated on May 2 that "many of the 15 points were already agreed upon," while the U.S. maintains a naval blockade on Iranian ports that Tehran describes as a violation of the ceasefire.
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