Iran is again planning to close the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Iranian consulate and reports from Iranian state-owned media on Saturday, throwing another blemish into US President Donald Trump’s plans to sell his peace deal with Tehran to skeptical voters.
Consulate of Iran in India wrote on X on Saturday that the closure will be partial “in response to the ongoing violation of the ceasefire in southern Lebanon” and will come as “the first step as a response to the breach of the enemy’s commitment, and if the aggression continues, further measures will be planned and taken.” Iran did not provide a timetable for closing the deal.
Iran’s joint military command announcement as reported by state news agency Mehr he gave the example of Israel continue the attack against Lebanon as a violation of the ceasefire agreement. Israel did not sign the accord that ended hostilities between the US and Iran, and continued Israeli attacks in the region caused concern for Trump heading into his signing the contract at Versailles, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
“Why are you blowing up buildings?” the outlet reported Trump telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu out of fear that Israel’s attacks on Lebanon could jeopardize the impending deal. “Stop blowing up buildings.” Trump also publicly rebuked Netanyahuduring the G7 press conferencethat day, calling on the Israeli leader to use a “soft touch” in Lebanon.
Trump administration officials cast doubt on Saturday’s reports of Iran’s intent to close the strait. US Vice President JD Vance said on Fox News that he was “skeptical” of the claims, saying the administration saw no evidence that Iran had actually blocked shipping.
Vance added that he could join special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for talks in Switzerland “as soon as tomorrow.”
It was not immediately clear on Saturday whether Iran had officially announced the closure of the channel or whether shipping companies had changed their operations to cope with the recent increase. Maritime travel through the waterway appeared to continue, according to a statement from the US Central Command issued shortly after Iran’s announcement.
“Safe passage through the international waterway remains intact today as 55 merchant ships pass through, transporting huge cargoes and more than 17 million barrels of oil to international markets,” CENTCOM wrote in a statement Saturday, without acknowledging reports of the deal closing.
Trump announced that the waterway, an important trade route forsome 20 percentglobal oil transportation,it was open and working for freeshortly after announcing the MOU, ending the four-month conflict between the United States and Tehran, was reached last week.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The president hasHe repeatedly stressed that the end of the war depends on Iran opening up againstrait and, before signing the MOU, threatened to continue to “blackmail Iran” until it agreed to reopen the waterway.
The reported commitment to block international access to the strait raises immediate questions about the deal’s durability and whether Tehran is ready to uphold one of its most important clauses. Trump has touted the deal as a breakthrough that would avert a regional war while protecting global trade through one of the world’s most important strategic waterways.
Any sustained disruption could have significant economic impacts. The narrow strait between Iran and Oman serves as a major shipping route for major oil producers in the Persian Gulf, and previous threats to cross the strait early in the conflict have sent it flying.high energy pricesand a fragmented international market.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the channel during confrontations with the United States and its allies, viewing the waterway as one of its sources of leverage. For some Democrats, that history meant Saturday’s announcement from Iran was less than unexpected.
“The continuing price of Trump’s ineptitude,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) charged X on Saturday in response to reports that the stream will be closed again. “Trump signed a ‘deal’ that depended on Israel to end the disastrous war in Lebanon and apparently did not control that with Israel.”
