Iran reimposes restrictions on Strait of Hormuz, accusing US of
violating deal to reopen it
[April 18, 2026]
By SAMY MAGDY and SAM METZ
CAIRO (AP) — Iran swiftly reversed course on reopening the Strait of
Hormuz, reimposing restrictions on the critical waterway on Saturday
after the U.S. said it would not end its blockade of Iran-linked
shipping.
Iran’s joint military command said on Saturday that “control of the
Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state ... under strict
management and control of the armed forces.” It warned that it would
continue to block transit through the strait as long as the U.S.
blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.
The announcement came the morning after U.S. President Donald Trump said
that even after Iran announced the strait's reopening on Friday, the
American blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a
deal with the U.S., including on its nuclear program.
The conflict over the chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis
roiling the global economy after oil prices began to fall again on
Friday on hopes the U.S. and Iran were drawing closer to an agreement.
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait and
further limits would squeeze already constrained supply, driving prices
higher once again.
Control over the strait has proven to be one Iran’s main points of
leverage and prompted the United States to deploy forces and initiate a
blockade on Iranian ports as part of an effort to force Iran to accept a
Pakistan-brokered ceasefire to end almost seven weeks of war that has
raged between Israel, the U.S. and Iran.
Iran said it fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels
after a 10-day truce was announced between Israel and the Iranian-backed
Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. An end to Israel’s war with
Hezbollah was a key demand of Iranian negotiators, who previously
accused Israel of breaking last week’s ceasefire with strikes on
Lebanon. Israel had said that deal did not cover Lebanon.
But after Trump said the blockade would continue, top Iranian officials
said his announcement violated last week’s ceasefire agreement between
Iran and the U.S. and warned the strait would not stay open if the U.S.
blockade remained in effect.
A data firm, Kpler, said movement through the strait remained confined
to corridors requiring Iran’s approval.
U.S. forces have sent 21 ships back to Iran since the blockade began on
Monday, U.S. Central Command said on X.
Pakistan announces progress toward new deal
Despite the escalation in the Strait of Hormuz, Pakistani officials say
the United States and Iran are still moving closer to a deal ahead of
the April 22 ceasefire deadline.
The ceasefire in Lebanon could clear one major obstacle to an agreement.
Speaking at a diplomatic forum in Antalya, Turkey, Pakistan’s Foreign
Minister Ishaq Dar said the ceasefire in Lebanon was a positive sign,
noting that fighting between Israel and Hezbollah had been a key
sticking point before talks in Islamabad ended “very close” to an
agreement last weekend.
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Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as
seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11,
2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri,File)
Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir visited Tehran, while
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan and Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Antalya, the
military and Sharif's office said. Pakistan is expected to host a second
round of talks between Iran and the U.S. early next week.
Questions linger about Lebanon truce
Even though mediators were optimistic, it was unclear to what extent
Hezbollah would abide by a truce it did not play a role in negotiating
and which will leave Israeli troops occupying a stretch of southern
Lebanon.
Trump said in another post that Israel is “prohibited” by the U.S. from
further strikes on Lebanon and that “enough is enough” in the
Israel-Hezbollah war.
The State Department said the prohibition applies only to offensive
attacks and not to actions taken in self-defense.
Shortly before Trump’s post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
said Israel agreed to the ceasefire in Lebanon “at the request of my
friend President Trump,” but that the campaign against Hezbollah is not
complete.
He claimed Israel had destroyed about 90% of Hezbollah’s missile and
rocket stockpiles and added that Israeli forces “have not finished yet”
with the dismantling of the group.
In Beirut, displaced families began moving toward southern Lebanon and
Beirut’s southern suburbs despite warnings by officials not to return to
their homes until it became clear whether the ceasefire would hold.
The Lebanese army and U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon reported
sporadic artillery shelling in some parts of southern Lebanon in the
hours after the ceasefire took effect.
The war, which began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, has
killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, more than 2,290 in Lebanon, 23 in
Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Thirteen U.S. service
members have also been killed.
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Metz reported from Ramallah, West Bank. Associated Press writers Munir
Ahmed in Islamabad and Andrew Wilks in Antalya, Turkey contributed to
this report.
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