WASHINGTON, April 22 (Xinhua) — U.S. President Donald Trump did not view Iran’s seizure of two European ships by force near the Strait of Hormuz as a breach of the extended U.S. ceasefire with Iran, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday.
“These were not U.S. ships. These were not Israeli ships. These were two international vessels,” she said on Fox News.
“These two ships were taken by speedy gunboats. Iran has gone from having the most lethal navy in the Middle East to now acting like a bunch of pirates. They don’t have control over the strait. This is piracy that we are seeing on display,” Leavitt said.
Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said earlier Wednesday that it had seized two vessels “allegedly operating without proper authorization, repeatedly violating regulations, and manipulating navigation systems.”
The IRGC also targeted a Greek-owned ship named Euphoria on Wednesday, a third “violating ship” attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which is now stranded on Iran’s shores, the Iranian semi-official Fars news agency reported. ■
