The Prime Minister has condemned drone and missile strikes by Iran against the United Arab Emirates, while the US military has stated that it destroyed seven Iranian vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
Drones and missiles launched from Iran were intercepted by US forces on Monday. Iran denies that any small boats have been destroyed.
After a South Korean cargo ship was hit, President Trump urged the nation to join Operation Freedom - the US efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz - writing on Truth Social: "Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission!"
Seoul confirmed that a ship was hit by an explosion and fire inside the strait. Twenty-four crew members, including six Korean nationals, were on board.
No casualties have been reported.
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Meanwhile, The United Arab Emirates said it came under attack for the first time since the truce took hold in early April. An Iranian drone strike triggered a fire at a key oil facility, while it was reported two cargo vessels were on fire off the country’s coast.
Sir Keir Starmer demanded an end to the escalation and urged Iran to engage “meaningfully” in talks to ensure the current Middle East ceasefire was maintained.
President Trump insisted on Monday evening that the war was "going very well" for the US, and reiterated his demand that Iran be denied access to nuclear weapons. He said: "We did a little detour, and it’s working out very nicely. They have no navy. They have no air force. They have no anti-aircraft equipment. They have no radar. They have no nothing. They have no leaders, actually.
"The leaders— the leaders happen to be gone also. But I can’t let them have a nuclear weapon or you’re going to have... problems like nobody would believe. And it’s going very well," he added.
Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, acknowledged there was ongoing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps interference with Project Freedom, but declined to comment on the status of the April 8 US-Iran ceasefire.
"The IRGC has launched multiple cruise missiles, drones, and small boats at ships we are protecting. We have defeated each and every one of those threats through the clinical application of defensive munitions," Cooper said.
The US claimed that two American-flagged merchant vessels have now passed through the Strait of Hormuz, following the launch of Project Freedom to clear the Iranian blockade of the vital waterway. Iran denied that any such crossings had taken place.
Shipping giant Maersk said the Alliance Fairfax, a US-flagged vehicle carrier, exited the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz on Monday whilst accompanied by the US military.
The British maritime security agency UKMTO has also reported that two ships were been hit off the coast of the UAE.
Speaking to Fox News earlier on Monday, President Trump had earlier said that Iran would be "blown off the face of the Earth" if it attacked US vessels in the Strait, and that Tehran was "much more malleable" when it came to peace talks.
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Iran later claimed to have since hit an American warship with missiles, but the US denied this.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has also since urged China to step up its diplomatic efforts with Iran to help international shipping resume through the Strait of Hormuz.
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping plan to discuss the subject when they meet next week.
President Trump said on a Monday Truth Social post: "Iran has taken some shots at unrelated Nations with respect to the Ship Movement, PROJECT FREEDOM, including a South Korean Cargo Ship. Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission! We’ve shot down seven small Boats or, as they like to call them, “fast” Boats.
"It’s all they have left. Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine, will have a News Conference tomorrow morning."
The UAE reports that it intercepted three Iranian missiles on Monday. Fires were reported on Monday at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone following Iranian strikes.
Crime & Courts Correspondent
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