Iran accuses the US of violating the ceasefire after attacking a ship in Ormuz

The Iranian Government has denounced the US attack on a commercial vessel in the Oman Sea as a direct violation of the ceasefire between the two countries and has raised tension around the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The spokesman for Jatam al-Anbiya's Central Headquarters has stated that US forces left the ship's navigation system unused by gunfire. The ship, a container ship from China to Iran , was intercepted in the waters of the Oman Sea.

In response, Iran has claimed to have carried outdrone attacks on US military vessels, but has not given details of these actions.

From Washington, President Donald Trump has given a radically different version of the facts and stressedthat  was merely a measure to comply with the naval blockade imposed on Iran. He explained that the ship (known as "Touska") tried to circumvent the measures and was therefore stopped after repeated warnings.

Trump has claimed that the U.S. Navy issued warnings to him for six hours, but that by ignoring it, an attack was launched to repeal the ship's navigation system. In addition, the president has reported that he is one of the ships sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury for improper practices and is under military surveillance.

The attack comeson the verge of a new round of negotiations scheduled in Islamabad. Although the US has confirmed its involvement, Iran maintains an ambiguous stance and makes the lifting of the naval blockade  a condition for sitting at the table.

In this context, the President of the Iranian Parliament, Mohamad Baqer Qalibaf, has made clear Tehran's mistrust of Washington. "We do not trust the enemy.

Qalibaf accuses the US of initiating the negotiation process through "deception," which shows that Washington is acting in bad faith. 

With the Strait of Hormuz still blocked — a route through which about 20% of the world's oil flows — and the two countries pecking, the diplomatic gap seems to be narrowing.