DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following an incident where a vessel strayed onto an ‘unauthorized route’ and was hit by a warning shot. This situation further strains the fragile ceasefire agreement with the United States.
Shortly after, the U.S. Central Command reported that its forces had initiated a third wave of strikes against Iran.
The U.S. military stated, “The United States is imposing a heavy cost by continuing to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the strait.”
According to the U.S. Central Command, a Cyprus-flagged container ship hit by Iran sustained “significant engine room damage,” and a civilian crew member is missing.
Previously, senior U.S. officials in Washington had indicated that progress in negotiations to solidify last month’s peace agreement would be hindered without ensuring the security of the strait. They had anticipated that Iran would make public statements to that effect.
However, the Revolutionary Guards Corps announced online on Saturday that Iran had fired warning shots at a “violating ship” and declared the strait closed until further notice.
This declaration followed a meeting on Saturday between the foreign ministers of Iran and Oman to discuss the strait that separates their countries. This meeting came after a series of Iranian attacks on ships and subsequent U.S. retaliation that undermined the interim deal to end the war.
In his first public statement since the funeral of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, who has remained out of sight since the war erupted, pledged retaliation for his father’s death during the initial strikes on February 28.
“This revenge is the will of our nation and must certainly be carried out,” declared Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on state television, shortly after President Donald Trump threatened additional missile attacks.
Oman announced that it and Iran have agreed to continue discussions on the Strait of Hormuz “at the technical and political levels,” following the United States’ call for Iran to publicly declare that the vital waterway remains open and safe from attacks.
Iran accuses Washington of violating the interim deal
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that he met with his Omani counterpart to explore “appropriate mechanisms for ensuring the safe passage of ships.”
For many years, the strait has been viewed as an international waterway. However, Iran now insists on controlling it and charging ships for passage, a position it adopted after the war’s onset. The U.S. advises mariners to navigate through Oman’s territorial waters.
Before the war, approximately 20% of global oil and natural gas trade passed through the strait. Iran’s control over it during the conflict triggered a global energy crisis, though oil prices have sharply dropped since their wartime peak of $120 a barrel.
Iran’s chief diplomat also accused the U.S. of breaching the interim agreement by ending waivers that allowed Iran to sell crude oil on the open market in U.S. dollars. Washington withdrew these waivers in response to the ship attacks in the strait.
“Reality check: There can only be mutual compliance,” Araghchi wrote on X.
Trump says he responded to threats to kill him
“A thousand missiles are Locked and Loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran, with thousands more to immediately follow, should the Iranian Government act on its threat,” Trump posted on social media overnight.
He claimed to be responding to threats “to assassinate, or attempt to assassinate” him. During Khamenei’s funeral, mourners held posters or banners calling for Trump to be killed alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump declared the ceasefire over but stated that the U.S. will continue negotiations.
U.S. officials, speaking on Friday under anonymity regarding the current situation with Iran, noted that the recent strikes resumed after a rogue faction of Iranian hard-liners attempted to undermine the ceasefire.
Iran maintains that its theocracy stands united under the new supreme leader.
Following the U.S. completion of its latest strikes on Thursday, additional attacks reportedly targeted Iran, raising questions about other possible assailants of the Islamic Republic.
While Israel did not claim responsibility, the Gulf Arab states might have initiated the attacks, likely intending to deter Iran from future aggression. On Thursday, Iran retaliated against U.S. strikes by targeting Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, and Qatar.
The two-day strikes in Iran resulted in at least 17 fatalities and 115 injuries, according to Iranian Health Ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour.
Price and Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Sam Metz in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.
