Trump declares Strait of Hormuz 'open to ALL ship traffic except for Iran' as the countries trade strikes

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The US President took to Truth Social to make the announcement, in which he claimed "oil is flowing like never before" thanks to the US, which he celebrated as having "the most powerful military in the world".

President Trump announced a full blockade of the crucial waterway, through which 20% of the world's oil travels, in response to "lying, violent, malicious leadership", which he said was taking Iran "down the path of total destruction".

The US and Iran traded a fresh round of strikes on Sunday morning after Tehran struck a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz.

"We will therefore have a FULL Blockade, but only on Ships coming to and from Iranian ports, or carrying anything have to do with Iranian cargo," he said.

Read more: Donald Trump declares US 'guardians of Hormuz' as he threatens 20 per cent charge on cargo shipped through Strait

Read more: One killed by Iranian strikes as US hits the country for third consecutive night following ceasefire collapse

The flare-up in tensions came after Tehran fired a warning shot that struck a vessel traveling on an unapproved route, before closing the key shipping strait altogether, having warned that any retaliation over the incident would be met with a "severe response."

The US claimed the IRGC had 'blatantly attacked' a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the Strait of Hormuz - with one civilian crew member missing after the ship was abandoned.

“A vessel that had jeopardised maritime security by switching off its systems was struck and ⁠brought to a halt,” Iran’s ⁠Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said in ​a statement, without giving any detail of the ship.

It added that the strait was closed "until further notice" and until "the end of US interference in this region."

Shortly afterwards, US Central Command said US forces hit 140 Iranian military targets on Saturday, out of more than 300 during three nights of strikes "to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels freely transiting the strait."

Targets included Iranian missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, ammunition storage facilities, communication networks, and coastal surveillance locations.

The Central Command said the strikes on Saturday were in response to the attack on a commercial ship in the Strait of Hormuz. "Commercial vessel transits through the vital international maritime corridor continue," it added.

In response, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday they had destroyed a command and control center and drone hangars at a base in Us ally Jordan, targeted a US military radar site in Kuwait, attacked US aircraft carrier support and refueling platforms in Oman and destroyed a fighter jet maintenance centre and command and control facility in Qatar.

The Guards also said they had struck and disabled a second vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.

The United Arab Emirates said its air defense systems engaged missiles and drones from Iran, while warning sirens sounded in Bahrain and explosions were heard in Doha.

The IRGC later confirmed that a "vessel that had jeopardized maritime security by switching off its systems was struck and brought to a halt".

The strait, the IRGC said, was closed "until further notice" and until "the end of U.S. interference in this region."

Acts of aggression against Iran "will be met with a severe response, and new enemy bases in the region will be targeted," the Navy said.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has accused the United States of violating the ceasefire agreement. "There can only be mutual compliance," he wrote on X on Friday.

On Sunday, Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf posted on X: "The era of one-sided deals is OVER. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking."

A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Iran, the US, Qatar and Pakistan had agreed to negotiate in a call that mediators were trying to arrange for Saturday while Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi was in Oman.

It was not immediately clear whether the efforts were successful. Araqchi and Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi met in Oman to exchange "views on appropriate mechanisms for the safe passage of ships through theStrait of Hormuz," according to a statement from the Iranian foreign minister.

Oman's state news agency later said that Omani and Iranian negotiators would continue talks "at the technical and political levels."

Oman is helping to mediate an end to a war that has destabilised the Gulf and raised prices around the world since the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on February 28.

About a fifth of the world's oil supply transited through the Strait of Hormuz before the war, and Iran's effective blockade of the waterway has caused energy prices to surge, fuelling global inflation.

A written statement from Iran's new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, on Saturday threatened vengeance for the death of his predecessor and father, who was killed on February 28.

Released to mark funeral ceremonies for former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday, which the new leader did not attend, it said the vengeance would take place whatever happened to Iran.

"We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs," the message said.

Trump had posted on Friday that he had ordered the US military to be prepared to launch thousands of missiles against Iran if Tehran attempted to assassinate him.

The Wall Street Journal and other US media reported this week that Israel had shared intelligence with Washington that Iran had recently devised a plan to assassinate Trump.

At the funeral ceremonies on Thursday, a huge crowd of mourners packed a courtyard, some bearing banners reading, "We Will Kill Trump."