Iran’s navy and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have told ships that the Strait of Hormuz is shut again, reinstating strict military control over the strategic waterway, even as at least two commercial vessels reported gunfire in the area. The move comes less than 24 hours after Iran had announced a temporary reopening of the Strait in parallel with a US‑brokered ceasefire‑related understanding in Lebanon, and follows Tehran’s complaint that the United States has not lifted its naval blockade on ships linked to Iranian ports.
Shipping and maritime‑security sources say two tankers transiting the Strait on Saturday reported being hit by gunfire, though there is no independent public confirmation of major casualties or sinkings. Iranian military broadcasts to vessels in the strait have warned that the waterway is “closed to maritime traffic” and that Iran’s naval forces will enforce strict control until what Tehran describes as “US‑imposed blockades” and threats to Iranian‑origin voyages are removed.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of the world’s seaborne crude oil passes, has been at the centre of a 2026 crisis marked by alternating openings and closures, US and Israeli strikes on Iran, and a US‑imposed naval‑blockade‑style control over Iran‑linked shipping. Iran’s latest step underlines how the region has returned to a more volatile phase, with immediate implications for global energy prices and insurer‑risk‑pricing for vessels attempting to cross the Gulf.
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