Iran Retaliates Against U.S.: "Missile Strike on Cargo Ship in the Persian Gulf"

IRGC Claims Retaliation for 'Gulf of Oman Attack'

Vessel Owned by Switzerland-Based MSC

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran announced on June 2 (local time) that it had launched a cruise missile attack on a commercial vessel passing through the Gulf (Persian Gulf) in retaliation against the United States.

MSC Container Ship (unrelated to article content). Photo by AFP Yonhap News

The IRGC told Iran's state-run Tasnim News Agency, "In response to the U.S. attack on the Iranian vessel Lion Star in the Gulf of Oman, the IRGC Navy launched a cruise missile attack on the U.S. and Israeli vessel MSC Sariska as a retaliatory measure."

According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) the previous day, an incident occurred in which a cargo ship sailing about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southeast of Iraq’s Umm Qasr Port in the Gulf was struck by an unidentified projectile, resulting in an explosion.

MSC is a Switzerland-based shipping company, and the MSC Sariska container vessel is registered under the Panamanian flag.

Tasnim News explained, "The founder and owner of MSC, the Aponte family, are descendants of Israelis, and co-founder Rafaela Aponte-Diamant was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1945."

The report continued, "For these reasons, many analysts consider MSC to be an Italian-Israeli conglomerate. MSC has established offices in Haifa and Ashdod in Israel and annually transports 600,000 TEU (one TEU is equivalent to a 20-foot container) of cargo to Israeli ports."

It also emphasized MSC's connections to the United States, citing records showing that the company made 94 port calls at 13 U.S. ports between 2012 and 2024.

The U.S. attack on an Iranian vessel mentioned by the IRGC appears to refer to an incident on May 30, when the U.S. military launched a missile at a Gambia-registered commercial ship sailing toward an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman.

At the time, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that the ship "was observed passing through international waters toward an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman. The crew was notified of a U.S. maritime blockade violation and received more than 20 warnings," and that a missile was subsequently launched to disable the vessel.

Amid a deadlock in war-ending negotiations between Iran and the United States due to disagreements, Iran is pursuing diplomatic solutions with Middle Eastern countries while simultaneously engaging in military attacks.

According to Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs the previous day, on the same day, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke by phone with Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, to discuss the regional situation.

The BBC reported the previous day that, based on its own analysis of satellite images and videos, Iran has attacked key facilities in eight Middle Eastern countries since late February, causing millions of dollars in damage to U.S. advanced air defense missile systems, airborne early warning and control aircraft, and radar systems.

Among the high-value U.S. military equipment damaged by Iran’s attacks were three air defense missile system sites in the Middle East, including the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system deployed at the Al Dhafra base in the UAE.

Additional U.S. military assets confirmed by satellite imagery to have suffered damage include E-3 early warning and control aircraft stationed at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia.

Analysis of satellite imagery also revealed that fuel tank bunkers, hangars, and satellite communication equipment at Ali Al Salem Air Base and Camp Arifjan in Kuwait were among the assets damaged.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.