The Peninsula Times - Iran declares Hormuz strait closed, US military insists traffic flowing

The strait, essential to global oil and gas supplies, has become a central point of contention between the two foes, repeatedly leading to exchanges of fire despite an agreement aimed at ending the Middle East war that was struck last month.

The latest exchange was prompted by another Iranian attack on a commercial ship in the waterway whose crew was forced to abandon it after it went up in flames.

Before the war began with surprise US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, there was free passage through Hormuz, but Tehran now insists that it will control the strait, while Washington is adamant it cannot.

"Following this incident... the Strait of Hormuz will be closed until further notice and until the end of American interventions in this region," Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Sunday, according to state news agency IRNA.

The US military's Central Command countered on X that the strait was "open to all vessels seeking to lawfully transit the international waterway".

It said US forces were "positioned and prepared to ensure" freedom of navigation, adding: "Iran does not control the strait. Traffic is flowing."

Control of the waterway has become key leverage for Iran, with an adviser to the country's supreme leader on Sunday saying it was more important than "dozens of atomic bombs".

- 'Hit them very hard' -

Iran said it had targeted two ships in Hormuz, accusing them of ignoring instructions to use an approved transit corridor or "violating regulations", IRNA said.

The attacks prompted a barrage of US strikes across Iran in response, with the US military saying it had hit about 140 targets in its third round of attacks this week.

Iranian media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Jask and on Qeshm Island, as well as in Khuzestan province, with one soldier reported killed in the southern city of Jask.

US President Donald Trump told CNN that "we hit them very hard last night", and said the Iranian attack had come despite the two sides being close to a deal on Saturday.

"They were giving up everything, and then all of a sudden two hours after that they hit a ship with a drone," he said

Iran's response to the US strikes came quickly, with sirens and explosions heard in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, AFP journalists and local authorities reported.

Qatar said three people were injured by Iranian attacks, while the UAE issued a warning for incoming missiles but later said they did not enter its territory.

Kuwait also said it was working to intercept an attack, and Jordan said three Iranian missiles fell inside the kingdom.

Iran's Guards said they also hit Oman, which has rarely been targeted.

They claimed to have destroyed "the logistical support centres for naval vessels and the refuelling facilities for US aircraft carriers at the port of Duqm".

Muscat summoned the Iranian ambassador and handed him a formal protest -- a rare move for the sultanate, which has been attempting to balance competing demands from Washington and Tehran.

The attack came just hours after the country hosted Iran's foreign minister to discuss the Strait of Hormuz.

- 'Blatant' attack -

Sunday's attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the waterway left one Indian sailor missing, New Delhi said.

Muscat, meanwhile, said it had rescued 23 crew members from a commercial ship.

Iran said it had fired "warning shots", but the US military accused Tehran of "blatantly" attacking the vessel.

The crew abandoned ship and were on a lifeboat, British maritime agency UKMTO reported, around 17 kilometres (10 miles) east of Oman.

Separate Iranian strikes on ships in Hormuz had triggered fighting earlier this week, along with heated rhetoric.

Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei has vowed revenge for the killing of his father and predecessor on the first day of the war, and said Iran had compiled a list of individuals to be targeted.

Trump on Saturday said any attempt to assassinate him would lead the United States to "completely decimate" Iran.

He has declared the ceasefire over while leaving the door open for talks, and mediators have been trying to salvage a diplomatic solution.

The top diplomat for Pakistan, which has been mediating, called for "de-escalation" on Sunday during a phone call with his Iranian counterpart, Islamabad said.

"Dialogue and diplomacy remain the only viable path to resolving disputes and achieving lasting peace," said Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.

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(O.Mofokeng--TPT)