Iran Reverses Hormuz Reopening, Accuses US Of Blockade Breach
Iran’s central military command reimposed control over the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, reversing an earlier reopening of the strategic waterway and accusing the United States of breaking a promise to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports.
The announcement, carried on state television, came just hours after the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that a commercial tanker was approached without radio warning and fired upon by two gunboats belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) approximately 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman. The vessel and its crew were reported safe.
“Control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous status,” Iran’s military command said in a statement, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. “This strategic waterway is under the strict management and control of the armed forces.”
The reversal followed a Friday declaration by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that the strait was “completely open” for all commercial vessels, a move he said was in line with a ceasefire in Lebanon. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X that “with the continuation of the blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open.”
The renewed closure casts doubt on the optimism expressed by United States President Donald Trump, who told reporters at the White House on Thursday that a peace deal with Iran was “very close.” In a phone interview with AFP on Friday, Trump said there were “no sticking points at all” left between Washington and Tehran.
The two-week ceasefire, mediated by Pakistan, is set to expire on April 22. A Pakistani delegation led by Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir concluded a three-day visit to Tehran on Saturday aimed at securing a second round of direct talks. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh, speaking at a diplomatic forum in Antalya, Turkey, said no date had been set for the next round of negotiations and that “obstacles still remain.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, in a written message marking Army Day, said the country’s navy is “ready to inflict new bitter defeats” on the United States and Israel. The war began on February 28 when the US and Israel launched joint strikes that killed former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Two key sticking points remain unresolved. Trump claimed Iran had agreed to hand over its 440 kilogrammes of uranium enriched to 60 percent purity. But Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told state TV: “Iran’s enriched uranium is not going to be transferred anywhere.”
The internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported that the nationwide internet blackout imposed at the start of the war has entered its 50th day, isolating ordinary Iranians from the global web for over 1,176 hours.