2 U.S. Navy destroyers transit Strait of Hormuz after dodging Iranian onslaught

Washington — Two U.S. Navy destroyers transited the Strait of Hormuz and entered the Persian Gulf after navigating an Iranian barrage, according to defense officials who spoke to CBS News under condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters.  

The USS Truxtun and USS Mason, supported by Apache helicopters and other aircraft, faced a series of coordinated threats during the passage, the defense officials said. Iran launched small boats, missiles and drones against them in what officials described as a sustained barrage.

Despite the intensity of the attacks, neither U.S. vessel was struck. 

Military officials said that defensive measures, bolstered by air support, successfully intercepted or deterred each incoming threat. They added that no projectiles that were launched reached the ships.

The transit comes after President Trump announced Sunday that the U.S. would help “guide” ships through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint that Iran has sought control over since the U.S. military operation began in late February. Hundreds of petroleum tankers and other ships have been stuck in the Persian Gulf for months now, driving up global oil prices.

The U.S. military’s Central Command said earlier Monday that American destroyers had traveled through the strait as part of the initiative, dubbed Project Freedom. The military did not specify which or how many naval vessels were involved in the transit.

Central Command said two U.S.-flagged commercial ships also transited the strait successfully, and the military has reached out to dozens of other shippers to “encourage traffic flow.”

Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, said Iran launched an attack against the American naval and commercial vessels that passed through the strait, leading the U.S. to destroy six Iranian small boats. (Iran’s state-run news outlets have denied that its boats were destroyed and claimed no commercial vessels have crossed through the strait recently.)

Iran has warned U.S. forces that they will be attacked if they enter the strait, putting into question a fragile four-week-long ceasefire between the two countries.

Iran launched missiles and drones at the United Arab Emirates earlier Monday, and Iranian drones targeted an oil tanker owned by Abu Dhabi’s state energy company that sought to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S.-allied Gulf state said. Iranian media claimed a U.S. warship was also hit by missiles, which Central Command denied.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is enforcing a naval blockade on Iranian ports at Mr. Trump’s direction, aiming to put pressure on Iran while the two countries exchange proposals for a longer-term deal. Iran has called the blockade a violation of the ceasefire.