The brief hope for a free-flowing global oil supply was dashed on Saturday as Iran’s central military command announced it would resume "strict management" of the Strait of Hormuz.
The move reverses a previous decision to unblock the strategic waterway, further escalating tensions with Washington.
The Khatam Al-Anbiya operational command stated that the situation has "reverted to its previous state" due to the ongoing US naval blockade of Iranian ports. Tehran labeled the continued US presence and restriction of Iranian vessels as "piracy," vowing that the strait will remain under tight military control until the US restores "complete freedom of navigation."
This sudden reversal comes just 24 hours after US President Donald Trump and Iranian officials suggested the waterway had reopened. However, Trump’s insistence that the US blockade remains in "full force" until a nuclear deal is reached appears to have triggered Tehran's retaliation.
The Strait of Hormuz, which carried 20% of the world’s oil before the conflict, remains a chaotic bottleneck, threatening global energy security.
