Tension in Gulf waters as freighter hit and Iran threatens US

TEHRAN, May 10 (AFP): The naval stand-off in the Gulf threatened to boil over Sunday following days of clashes and tit-for-tat accusations, as a cargo ship was hit off Qatar and Iran warned it could target US interests in the region.
Qatar's defence ministry said the freighter had been arriving in the country's waters from Abu Dhabi and was hit by a drone northeast of the port of Mesaieed.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said a bulk carrier had reported being struck by an unknown projectile. "There was a small fire that has been extinguished, there are no casualties. There is no reported environmental impact," it said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Iran's Fars news agency reported that "the bulk carrier that was struck near the coast of Qatar was sailing under the US flag and belonged to the United States".
This came after Iran's Revolutionary Guards threatened to target US interests in the Middle East if its tankers come under fire -- as they had done on Friday when a US fighter jet fired on and disabled two Iran-flagged vessels in the Gulf of Oman to prevent them from continuing to Iranian ports.
"Any attack on Iranian tankers and commercial vessels will result in a heavy attack on one of the American centres in the region and enemy ships," the IRGC said.
Iran's neighbour Kuwait also reported an attempted attack.
Iran's army warned on Sunday that countries complying with US sanctions against the Islamic republic would face difficulties crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
Early this month the US government imposed new sanctions on Iranian interests and warned ships against paying authorities in Tehran to pass through the strait.
The United States and Bahrain have drafted a UN resolution, seen by AFP, calling on Iran to halt restrictions on shipping through the waterway, which has become a major flashpoint since the outbreak of war on February 28.
Reuters adds, Iran has sent its response to a US proposal to begin peace talks to end the war, the IRNA news agency reported on Sunday, as two carriers were allowed to pass through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.