Since Saturday night, with Iran declaring that it has the Strait under its control and has closed it, while Donald Trump, for his part, has stated that it remains open.
Donald Trump stated today that the Strait of Hormuz is open to commercial ships, despite the fact that the U.S. and Iran continue to launch attacks against each other, raising concerns about the security of one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.
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Trump made these remarks during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
The U.S. armed forces are “ready to ensure freedom of navigation.”
The Strait of Hormuz is open to all ships, and U.S. military forces “have taken up positions and are prepared” to ensure freedom of navigation, the U.S. Central Command announced today, one day after an exchange of fire between Iranian and U.S. forces, while Iran announced that it had closed the vital waterway.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that the Strait of Hormuz is “open to all ships,” despite the fact that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced earlier today that it had closed the waterway.
“The Strait of Hormuz is open to all vessels wishing to transit the international waterway lawfully,” CENTCOM wrote in a post on X, adding: “U.S. forces are positioned and ready to ensure that freedom of navigation remains available, despite Iran’s unjustified aggression, harassment, threats, and baseless claims.”
“Iran does not control the Strait. Traffic continues,” he continued.
Earlier today, the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), which is overseen by the U.S. Navy, reported that Oman’s “southern route” through the Strait of Hormuz remains open to two-way traffic. It warned, however, that the security threat level along the sea route remains “serious.”
Traffic through the strait decreased once again following Iran’s announcement, as shown this morning by data from the maritime traffic monitoring service MarineTraffic, cited by CNNi.
Passage through the Strait of Hormuz “is not possible,” Iran
insists. The Iranian authority responsible for overseeing the new protocol for transits through the waterway stated today that the passage of ships “is not possible,” shortly after U.S. Central Command insisted that the strait was open.
“Due to recent illegal actions by U.S. military forces in the region, transit through the Strait of Hormuz is not currently possible,” the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) stated in a post on X.
The Iranian authority stated that once “stability and calm are restored, all applications will be reviewed according to the established schedule and the necessary permits will be issued.”
Tensions are at a “red alert” level following attacks
on both sides An Iranian official stated that his country “has taken control of the Strait of Hormuz by force” following the attack on a Cypriot-flagged ship in a critical shipping lane. Ebrahim Rezaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, wrote on X: “We will defend it, and with force.”
The United States launched attacks against at least nine different cities in five provinces. According to the U.S. side, at least 140 targets were struck in retaliation for the new wave of attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The targets were struck with precision-guided munitions launched from fighter jets operating from land and sea bases, unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), and warships. The targets included Iranian missile and drone facilities, naval capabilities, ammunition storage facilities, communications networks, and coastal surveillance facilities.
The Iranian news agency Mehr reported that communications infrastructure in Kerman Province was hit by a U.S. attack.
In retaliation, Iran struck U.S. military targets in Oman and Jordan in response to the latest wave of U.S. attacks.
State media in Oman and Jordan reported drone and missile attacks on Sunday.
In Jordan, “three missiles launched from Iranian territory struck various locations within the Kingdom early Sunday morning,” the Jordan News Agency reported, citing a military source.
“No casualties were reported, and the damage was limited to minor property damage,” it added.
The Oman News Agency, citing a security source, reported that locations in the Musandam Governorate “were targeted by drones.” It did not specify where the drones came from. The Musandam Governorate juts out into the Strait of Hormuz.
Following these reciprocal attacks, Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, stated that “the era of unilateral agreements is over”. It is unclear whether he means that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been canceled; however, it is known that President Trump stated that the ceasefire has “expired.”
It should be noted that the first article of the Memorandum of Understanding provides for the cessation of hostilities and a complete ceasefire on all fronts; however, this is now the fifth time that attacks have been carried out by both sides.
