Iran says Strait of Hormuz under its control, rejects Trump claims

In a statement on Thursday, the leader of Iran's Basij Organisation declared that the Strait of Hormuz is "under Iran's control and management", contradicting President Donald Trump's recent claim that the United States has "total control" of the waterway. Speaking on Thursday, Hojjatoleslam Hossein Taeb, quoted by Iran's semi-official Fars news agency, stated that Iran's country continues on its path in complete security.

He added that the Americans witnessed the strength of the Islamic revolution. This came a day after Trump tweeted that the US had "total control" of the strategic waterway. Since the onset of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28, Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, which is responsible for a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas transit.

In response, the US imposed a naval blockade on Iranian shipping and ports, while asserting that it would safeguard the freedom of navigation for vessels travelling to and from non-Iranian ports. On Thursday, Iran's joint military command, Khatam Al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, affirmed that no vessel could pass through the Strait of Hormuz without Tehran's approval.

The command dismissed the US's assertions about the free passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz as "lies and falsehoods". Also on Thursday, senior military political official Rasoul Sanaei-Rad affirmed that Iran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz unless the US adhered to the commitments of the interim deal aimed at ending the war.

He also warned that Iran would respond more forcefully in any future conflict, stating: "In a possible future war, we will stand more firmly and more offensively." In June, Iran and the US reached an interim agreement to extend a ceasefire and resume freedom of navigation in the Gulf. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi blamed the US's actions in the Strait of Hormuz on intelligence failures, particularly during the launch of the war on Iran.

In a post on X, Araghchi described Washington's actions as "an even bigger miscalculation", adding that "worse than fake news is fake intelligence".