This is a live blog and will be updated.
Monday 20th April: 7:00am EAT
Shortly after announcing it had reopened the critical maritime route on Friday evening, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz again, saying that it was in response to the continuing counter-blockade by US Navy.
- •On Sunday, US President Donald Trump, in a post on Truth Social, said the US Navy had bombed an Iranian-flagged tanker and boarded it.
- •Islamabad is preparing to host the next round of talks between Washington and Tehran, even as it emerges that Iran's political and military may not be on the same page on continued engagement.
- •The rapid developments have pushed oil prices back up again, after stock futures and the US dollar rose on Friday's news that Iran would reopen the critical maritime route.
Friday 17th April: 4:50pm EAT
Iran's political leadership say it has reopened the Strait of Hormuz to all commercial vessels, ending a seven-week disruption that has upended economies and societies across the globe, the country's foreign minister said on Friday.
- •The announcement immediately triggered a tumble in global oil prices which had spiked as demand outstripped supply across the globe.
- •Tehran's announcement comes after Israel and Lebanon announced a 10-day ceasefire in a conflict where more than 2, 000 people in Lebanon, and 15 Israelis have been killed since late February.
- •According to Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire.
"In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through [the] Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep. of Iran," Araghchi said in a post on X.
Iran sits on the northern coast of the Strait and has, for decades, used the threat of closure as its most potent geopolitical lever. Whenever Western nations tighten sanctions on Tehran, Iranian officials warn that they can shut the waterway and choke the global economy.
After Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran and its leadership in late February, Tehran retaliated by striking targets across the Gulf and closing the critical maritime route.
The US launched a counter-blockade in April, which President Donald Trump has said will remain in place until Washington's "transaction with Iran is 100% complete." The two sides are said to be discussing a potential lifting of the crippling sanctions on Iran in exchange for Tehran's stockpile of enriched uranium.
Related:
Why the Strait of Hormuz is so Important for Global Trade
Saudi Arabia Fears Yemeni Houthis Might Blockade Crucial Red Sea Strait
