Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was flowing Friday — under Iran’s monitoring — after a radio message to vessels in the region suggested the waterway had been closed over tensions with Israel and the US.
“The armed forces of Iran, in accordance with the memorandum of understanding [MOU] to end the war dated June 18, 2026, have taken the necessary measures to ensure the safe passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, and shipping in this route is currently underway,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Friday, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.
Earlier, an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) statement read over maritime radio channels warned vessels from entering the strait because the US was in violation of the MOU between Washington and Tehran, which President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed Wednesday.
“Since Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon, the complete lifting of the naval blockade, and the withdrawal of American terrorist forces from the Persian Gulf and the region are among the main conditions of the agreement between Iran and the United States, the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until these conditions are met,” it said. “All ships are requested, for the sake of their security and safety, not to approach the Strait of Hormuz. Any vessel that defies this directive will be targeted.”
The MOU declared Iran would open the strait — which has been closed since the war began on Feb. 28 — in exchange for the US lifting its blockade on Iranian ports.
US Central Command said Thursday it had formally lifted its two-month blockade on Iranian ports.
The differing messages mirrored internal divisions in Iran over whether it should keep fighting the US or seek a truce — strife American and regional sources have cited as a significant reason why it took roughly two months of negotiations for finalize the MOU.
The Iranian regime ultimately approved the MOU, while some members of the IRGC — which internally opposed ending the war — argued that Tehran should wait to sign the agreement until Israel withdraws all troops from Lebanon.
Richard Goldberg, Foundation for Defense of Democracies senior adviser and a fromer White House National Security Council official, told The Post the ordeal was evidence the US must remain steadfast during the next 60 days of negotiations, as Tehran will continue to push the envelope on what it can swindle out of the US and the world.
“It’s going to be important at every step of the way to ensure we respond forcefully to every attempt by the Iranians to pull back, jerk us around, or shake us down for more,” he said.
“There is a fine line between strategic patience and prudent strategy versus getting sucked into an extortion racket. And we should proceed to ensure we are pursuing the former and not the latter.”
The Iranian Foreign Ministry announcement came after a US official said Israel and Hezbollah had reached a new cease-fire agreement.
The new cease-fire — negotiated by the US and Qatar — came just a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the Jewish state’s forces would continue hunting terrorists in Lebanon despite the US-Iran MOU.
“We will restore security and prosperity to northern towns,” Netanyahu said. “That requires maintaining the security zone in southern Lebanon.”
The Israel Defense Forces had also published a new map showing an expanded zone of occupation, deploying troops more than 6 miles across the Lebanese border, including north of the Litani River.