Overview
- U.S. Navy ships are enforcing a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, with destroyer USS Rafael Peralta confronting Iranian-flagged vessels and U.S. forces detaining Iranian ships under stepped-up patrols.
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said controlling the strait is its strategy, seized additional vessels including the Liberian-flagged Epaminodes, and laid mines again as President Trump ordered the Navy to destroy boats caught laying mines.
- Some tankers were allowed to pass in a limited reopening, yet Reuters vessel-tracking shows overall traffic down after multiple seizures, and industry voices warn shippers may need military escorts even if lanes reopen.
- Diplomatic efforts remain shaky as Iran denied direct talks with the U.S. and sent demands via Pakistan, and thinly traded prediction markets now price low odds on quick talks, a fast blockade lift, or near-term traffic normalization.
- Oil climbed back above $100 as U.S. energy exports hit records, four carrier groups gathered under Operation Epic Fury, and unconfirmed reports of U.S. rules to fire on disruptive Iranian boats fed worries about a longer disruption that could stretch de-mining into months.