Strike on cargo ship in Strait of Hormuz 'kills one'

An Iranian cargo vessel has been struck off Qeshm island in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media say, a day before Iran plans to brief countries in the region on its contested efforts to manage shipping traffic in the waterway.

The attack, which the reports said killed one and wounded four, drew attention back to the strait after threats to shipping in the region intensified last week when Iran-aligned Houthi rebels captured an island on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea.

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency quoted the Qeshm governor as blaming a "terrorist enemy" for Sunday's attack.

There was no immediate comment by the US military, which has struck Iranian-flagged vessels during its blockade of Iranian ports and faces a new threat from Iranian ballistic missiles launched at its warships.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations monitor said a vessel was hit by a projectile while transiting the strait although it was not clear if this was referring to the same attack.

The monitor said a fire had broken out and that local authorities were helping those on board leave the vessel.

Qeshm island, about 22km from the port city of Bandar Abbas, is key to Iran asserting control over the Strait of Hormuz.

"Our people can't be bullied into submission. Iran won't surrender," President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a social media post.

Iran has said foreign ministers from regional countries will meet on Monday in Oman to discuss efforts by Iran and Oman, located on the other side of the strait, to manage shipping on it.

Commercial ship traffic remains low in the Strait of Hormuz as attacks continue on what was seen as an international waterway before the US and Israel launched the war on February 28.

The US has asserted that plenty of oil is getting out as its military helps to guide ships along Oman's coast, at the risk of being struck.

Only Iraq has publicly confirmed its attendance, in a statement by the state-run Iraqi News Agency.

Bahrain has said it will not attend, citing a lack of diplomatic relations with Iran.

Since early in the war, Iran has expressed interest in having ships pay fees for transit.