Tehran has reimposed restrictions on ships travelling through the Strait of Hormuz claiming US ‘violation’
Tehran has rapidly reversed its decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, reimposing restrictions on the vital waterway after the US indicated that the reopening would not bring an end to its blockade of Iran-linked shipping.
Tehran’s joint military command announced on Saturday that its “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state… under strict management and control of the armed forces”.
It warned that it would continue to obstruct passage through the strait for as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in place.
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The statement came the morning after President Donald Trump declared that the American blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear programme.
The dispute over the crucial chokepoint threatened to worsen the energy crisis already weighing on the global economy, after oil prices began to slip again on Friday amid hopes that the US and Iran were edging closer to an agreement.
About a fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait and further limits would squeeze already constrained supply, driving prices higher again.
Control over the strait has proven to be one Iran’s main points of leverage and prompted the US to deploy forces and initiate a blockade on Iranian ports as part of an effort to force Tehran to accept a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire to end almost seven weeks of war between Israel, the US and Iran.
Iran said it fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels after a 10-day truce was announced between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon, but after Mr Trump announced the blockade would continue, senior Iranian officials said his announcement violated last week’s ceasefire agreement between Iran and the US and warned the strait would not stay open if the US blockade remained.
Data firm Kpler said movement through the strait remained confined to corridors requiring Iran’s approval.
US forces have sent 21 ships back to Iran since the blockade began on Monday, US Central Command said.
Despite the escalation in the Strait of Hormuz, Pakistani officials say the US and Iran are still moving closer to a deal ahead of the April 22 ceasefire deadline.
Foreign minister Ishaq Dar said the ceasefire in Lebanon was a positive sign, noting that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah had been a key sticking point before talks in Islamabad ended “very close” to an agreement last weekend.
Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir visited Tehran, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Antalya, the military and Mr Sharif’s office said. Pakistan is expected to host a second round of talks between Iran and the US early next week.
The ceasefire in Lebanon could clear one major obstacle to an agreement, but it is unclear to what extent Hezbollah would abide by a deal it did not play a role in negotiating and which will leave Israeli troops occupying a stretch of southern Lebanon.
Mr Trump said in another post that Israel is “prohibited” by the US from further strikes on Lebanon and that “enough is enough” in the Israel-Hezbollah war.
The State Department said the prohibition applies only to offensive attacks and not to actions taken in self-defence.
Shortly before Mr Trump’s post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel agreed to the ceasefire in Lebanon “at the request of my friend President Trump”, but added that the campaign against Hezbollah is not complete.
He claimed Israel had destroyed about 90% of Hezbollah’s missile and rocket stockpiles and that Israeli forces “have not finished” with the dismantling of the group.
In Beirut, displaced families began moving towards southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs despite warnings by officials not to return to their homes until it became clear whether the ceasefire would hold.
The Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon reported sporadic artillery shelling in some parts of southern Lebanon in the hours after the ceasefire took effect.
An end to Israel’s war with Hezbollah was a key demand of Iranian negotiators, who previously accused Israel of breaking last week’s ceasefire with strikes on Lebanon. Israel had said that deal did not cover Lebanon.
The fighting has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, more than 2,290 in Lebanon, 23 in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Thirteen US service members have also been killed.
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