Freightwaves: CMA CGM container ship hit by missile in Strait of Hormuz

Published by freightwaves 

The United States paused naval escorts of merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday after a missile attack on a container ship resulted in injuries to crew.

Reports said that the 2,800-TEU CMA CGM San Antonio had switched off its identification system prior to commencing transit from Dubai. Marseilles-based CMA CGM in a statement confirmed the attack. It said injured crew were evacuated and are receiving medical care, and that it is closely monitoring the situation.

British security monitors reported the attack, but in a change from protocol did not identify the ship’s location.

Shortly after the attack, President Donald Trump announced on social media that the U.S. would pause the Project Freedom ship escorts while it pursued negotiations with Iran.

Trump’s statement came only hours after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth termed Project Freedom a success as “a powerful red, white and blue dome over the strait”. Hegseth added that the U.S. military had contacted hundreds of shipping lines to say it was safe to exit the Arabian Gulf.

The Malta-flagged San Antonio had operated in CMA CGM’s Midas service connecting the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East, and Africa.