A freighter anchored in the Strait of Hormuz. (symbol image)Image: keystone
The US Army fired on an Iranian ship in the Strait of Hormuz. The incident puts Donald Trump’s desired new round of negotiations even more in question. The oil price reacted immediately.
April 20, 2026, 06:31April 20, 2026, 06:49
That’s what happened
The USA has carried out its threat and now also fired on a ship that wanted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian freighter was ordered to stop several times before a US destroyer fired on the engine room, according to the US Army. The incident fueled new fears in the markets and the price of oil rose sharply again.
The current developments in the ticker:
What is known about the incident
According to the US regional command Centcom, the ship was on its way to the Iranian coastal city of Bandar Abbas in the Strait of Hormuz. The freighter named “Touska” was traveling from Malaysia to Iran.
After hours of unsuccessful warnings, the warship “USS Spruance” asked the crew of the Iranian freighter to leave the engine room, Centcom said. The engine was then put out of action. A video posted on social media shows the US warship firing several times in the direction of the freighter.
The ship is now under US control after the attacks, Centcom said.
The US had previously ordered 25 ships to turn around or return to their Iranian ports. This is now the first known incident in which violence was used. Because of the new escalation, oil prices immediately rose again. The costs for the reference varieties Brent and WTI rose between five and six percent and are currently hovering around 95 US dollars (Brent) and 89 dollars (WTI) (Monday morning Swiss time).
That’s what Trump says
Trump justified the attack on his Truth Social platform. The ship tried to break through the US naval blockade, said the US President. The Iranian crew repeatedly ignored US instructions to stop the passage. That’s why the US ship USS Spruance fired on the engine room. According to Trump, the Iranian freighter was already under US sanctions “due to previous illegal activities”. The US Army will now examine the ship’s cargo.
This is how Iran reacts
Iran strongly condemned the attack. Iran’s military spoke of “armed maritime piracy” and announced that it would “respond soon,” as the pro-government broadcaster Press TV reported. Iranian President Massoud Peseschkian also accused Washington of breaching the treaty. According to the Iranian military, US troops boarded the Iranian freighter and destroyed its onboard navigation equipment.
Iranian President Massoud Peseschkian.Image: EPA
There were shots fired at ships in the Strait of Hormuz again on Sunday. Two Indian-flagged tankers were hit by Iranian gunfire. According to the Indian government, although Iran has assured ships from the country safe passage.
What does the attack mean for new negotiations?
The US attack is unlikely to be conducive to a new round of negotiations desired by Trump. The US President announced new talks on Sunday. A US delegation led by Vice President JD Vance is traveling to the Pakistani capital Islamabad. Trump claimed that the US was offering the leadership in Tehran a “very fair and reasonable deal”. However, people there seem to see this differently: the Iranian state agencies Irna and Tasnim reported that the Iranian leadership is rejecting another meeting with US representatives.
Trust in US President Trump seems to be at zero. As the US news portal “Axios” reported, citing Iranian officials, the regime in Tehran fears that Trump’s renewed offer to negotiate is a deceptive maneuver. The Iranians therefore believe it is possible that the US government could lull the enemy into security and then launch a large-scale surprise attack. In fact, Trump had deployed additional troops to the region in the past few days.
The Pakistani government has not yet officially announced anything about new negotiations in Islamabad. Shortly after Trump’s announcement of new talks, the Foreign Ministry announced that department head Ishaq Dar had emphasized in a telephone conversation with his Iranian colleague Abbas Araghchi that continuous dialogue was crucial to quickly defuse tensions and promote peace in the region.
Abbas Araghchi’s influence in Iran appears to be limited.Image: www.imago-images.de
However, it is currently questionable to what extent the new figureheads of the Iranian regime, such as Foreign Minister Araghchi, are actually capable of taking action. In Iran, contradictory statements come from government circles and those around the Revolutionary Guard. There are many indications that a power struggle is raging in the country itself.
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With material from the news agencies sda and dpa.