Iran ceasefire tested as cargo ship catches fire after being hit off Qatar's coast

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Iran ceasefire tested as cargo ship catches fire after being hit off Qatar's coast

This is a locator map for the Gulf Cooperation Council member states: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates. …

This is a locator map for the Gulf Cooperation Council member states: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates. AP hide caption toggle caption AP DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A cargo ship caught fire Sunday after being hit by an unknown projectile off Qatar's coast, the British military said, in the latest attack on vessels in the Persian Gulf since a shaky ceasefire stopped fighting between the U.S. and Iran. The Trump administration says the month-old ceasefire remains in effect. But it has been repeatedly tested with Iran restricting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway key to the global flow of oil, and the U.S. imposing a blockade of Iranian ports. Washington has been awaiting Iran's response to a new proposal for a deal to end the war, reopen the strait to shipping and roll back Iran's nuclear program. One of the main sticking points in the negotiations is the fate of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The U.N. nuclear agency says Iran has more than 440 kilograms (970 pounds) of uranium that is enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels. In an interview with Iranian state media, a spokesman for the Iranian military said that forces were on "full readiness" to protect nuclear sites where the uranium is stored. "We considered it possible that they might intend to steal it through infiltration operations or heliborne operations," Brig. Gen. …

Original source: NPR News

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washington dc · Revolutionary Guards · Bahrain · Donald Trump · Persian Gulf · Saudi Arabia · Associated Press · Hormuz · United Arab Emirates