The United States Army has reported that it has halted the navigation of nine merchant ships and has taken another vessel out of service in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz, as part of the naval blockade that Washington maintains over Iranian ports and vessels in this strategic maritime route.
According to the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) explained in a statement disseminated on social media, sailors assigned to the guided missile destroyer "USS Michael Murphy" (DDG 112) have coordinated and supervised the maneuvers of U.S. forces as they moved through the Arabian Sea.
Hours earlier, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, threatened to "destroy a bridge or a power plant" in Iran for each ship that is attacked by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz, in a context of exchange of attacks between both sides that persists despite the ceasefire agreement sealed in April and the memorandum of understanding signed in June.
In recent days, Washington has carried out several attacks against Iranian targets alleging violations of the memorandum of understanding, accusations rejected by Tehran, which denounces violations of the ceasefire and has responded with actions against U.S. interests in the region. This escalation has heightened fears of a definitive failure of the talks to achieve a permanent cessation of hostilities.