After the Iranian missile strike on a CMA CGM container ship attempting to exit the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, a US military official has made a major statement on the attack that left at least eight crew members injured.
The official hinted that it was the operator of the CMA CGM San Antonio (IMO: 9294173) that was responsible for the Iranian cruise missile strike on the ship as it did not follow Project Freedom's guidelines and check-in procedures before the risky transit.
The official also pointed out that even after the Tuesday attack, the Maltese-flagged ship's crew had sought help from Oman, instead of US forces, which allegedly implied that it was not reliant on the US Navy, a New York Times report said.
The French shipping major, however, claimed that it had been in contact with the US forces throughout the transit attempt.
What we know so far
The container ship was en route to the Mundra Port in Gujarat after departing from the Khalifa Port in the UAE, according to AIS data, which has not been updated since Tuesday.
The attack on the India-bound vessel comes despite the US Navy's assurances under Project Freedom that its warships could help safely extract ships from within the strait amid ongoing US-Iran tensions that strain the ceasefire between them.
The US Navy project, touted as a humanitarian move to extract seafarers aboard a number of stranded ships in the Persian Gulf amid the Gulf tensions, was however paused by US President Donald Trump on Thursday.
This was allegedly due to pressure from the Saudi leadership that was in favour of the Pakistan-mediated talks between Iran and the US, as per an NBC News report.
Notably, the attack also comes after the shipping giant confirmed that the CMA CGM Saigon (IMO: 9357547)—also carrying the Maltese flag and headed to the Colombo Port in Sri Lanka—had managed to safely exit the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.
However, the India-bound ship did not have the same luck, as it was struck by the missile during the nightly transit near Oman. The vessel is known to be damaged, but it is not yet known whether the attack disabled the ship, and whether it was later moved back into the Persian Gulf.
"While a few ships made it out safely while 'Project Freedom' was in place, it was clear that transits without coordination with Iran entailed significant risk," said Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer with shipping association BIMCO.
