USS Truxtun and USS Mason Repel Iranian Barrage in Strait of Hormuz

Two U.S. Navy destroyers, the USS Truxtun and USS Mason, transited the Strait of Hormuz on Monday after repelling what U.S. Central Command described as a sustained Iranian barrage of missiles, drones and small boats.

CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said U.S. forces destroyed six Iranian fast boats and intercepted multiple cruise missiles and drones during the opening phase of Project Freedom, and he said, "We have defeated each and every one of those threats through the clinical application of defensive munitions."

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The U.S. operation involved defensive measures supported by Apache and Seahawk helicopters and other aircraft, and Cooper said Iranian fast boats were sunk by U.S. Apache and Seahawk helicopters while neither vessel was struck.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency, citing a military source, disputed the U.S. account and said an investigation found American forces attacked two small cargo boats traveling from Khasab, Oman toward Iran, not IRGC combat vessels, and it said five civilian passengers were killed in what it described as a "hasty" action driven by U.S. "fear."

CBS News reported that the USS Truxtun and USS Mason made it through the strait despite heavy Iranian attack, and it said defense officials described the barrage as "a sustained barrage" of coordinated Iranian attacks during passage through the strait.

In a separate account, Tasnim News Agency said the U.S. claim that it targeted 6 Iranian speedboats was false and that an investigation was conducted into the nature of the claim from local sources, adding, "Following the false claim by the U.S. military that it had targeted 6 Iranian speedboats".

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Stars and Stripes reported that CENTCOM said the Iranian state media claim that the IRGC hit an unidentified U.S. warship with two missiles was false, and it quoted CENTCOM’s post to X saying, "no U.S. ships have been struck."

The BBC’s commentary on the Freedom Project described Trump’s suspension of the initiative "for a short period" to see whether the United States and Iran could reach an agreement, and it noted that the Iranian military said it fired at American warships to deter them from sailing through the strait while the United States said it had sunk small boats.

The incidents at sea marked direct exchanges between the U.S. and Iran since the two countries entered a ceasefire roughly one month ago, and CBS News said the events threatened the fragile ceasefire that was supposed to end the war.

CBS News reported that President Trump told ABC News the ceasefire is still in effect despite U.S. strikes on Iranian targets, and it quoted Trump describing the strikes as "just a love tap."

The BBC said CENTCOM described the Freedom Project as supported by "destroyers equipped with guided missiles, more than 100 aircraft on land and at sea, multiple unmanned platforms, and 15,000 troops," and it reported that the U.S. said about 22,500 sailors on 1,550 commercial ships were stranded in the Gulf.

In parallel, the Türkiye Today report said Cooper told reporters the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports remained in effect and was "exceeding expectations," while Cooper also advised Iranian forces to "remain well clear of U.S. military assets" and declined to comment on whether he believed the April 8 ceasefire remained in effect.