Overview
- CENTCOM, which set a Monday 10 a.m. ET start, said the blockade covers all vessels entering or departing Iranian ports while allowing ships transiting between non‑Iranian ports to pass the Strait of Hormuz.
- The announcement followed roughly 21 hours of U.S.–Iran negotiations in Islamabad that ended without a deal in the highest‑level direct talks since 1979, with Pakistan mediating.
- President Trump said the Navy would interdict ships that paid Iran so‑called tolls and would clear alleged mines, framing the step as a way to end Iran’s control over access to the waterway.
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned of a forceful response and asserted control over Hormuz, raising the risk to a fragile two‑week ceasefire that both sides had observed after six weeks of fighting.
- Oil prices jumped about 7–8% as some tankers altered course, reflecting concern over a chokepoint that normally carries about one‑fifth of seaborne oil and a key share of LNG, fertilizers, and other goods.