US demands Iran affirm the Strait of Hormuz is open as ceasefire collapses
The provisional US–Iran ceasefire has unravelled. After Iranian attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz earlier in the week, the US carried out two nights of airstrikes on Iran, and Iran answered with missile and drone attacks on US-linked military facilities in the region. President Trump has declared the truce over.
Washington is now pressing a concrete demand: that Tehran publicly state the Strait of Hormuz is open to all traffic. The strait carries a large share of the world’s seaborne oil, and shipping through the US-backed corridor has thinned since the latest exchange of fire — a public guarantee is meant to reassure carriers and steady energy markets.
The rhetoric has sharpened alongside the fighting. At commemorations for Iran’s slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, crowds called for Trump’s killing, and Israeli officials warned of a specific plot against him; Trump responded on social media that missiles were “locked and loaded” and threatened to destroy wide areas of Iran if the regime acted. Despite the threats, Trump said talks would continue, and Qatari and Pakistani mediators are still working the channel. The practical question is whether either side wants a durable arrangement enough to convert a shaky memorandum into an enforceable one.