Iran fires shots, seizes cargo vessel

Iranian forces fired warning shots across the bridge of a Marshall Islandsflagged cargo vessel as it was traversing the Strait of Hormuz, boarded the ship and directed it toward the Iranian mainland, a Pentagon official said Tuesday. The incident with the MV Maersk Tigris, which prompted the U.S. Navy to dispatch a destroyer and a plane in response, comes at a critical time in Iran’s relations with its neighbours and the U.S. as a nuclear deal is being negotiated.