(FILES) In this picture obtained from Iran’s ISNA news agency on June 18, 2026, vessels are seen anchored in Bandar Abbas along the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran announced it was closing the Strait of Hormuz on July 12 and launched missiles and drones at its Gulf neighbours, in retaliation for new US strikes following an attack by Iranian forces on a merchant vessel that was abandoned in flames by its crew. (Photo by AMIRHOSSEIN KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP) /
Iran said the Strait of Hormuz was closed on Sunday while the United States insisted it remained open, after the confrontation over the vital waterway again sparked US and Iranian strikes.
The strait, essential to global oil and gas supplies, has become a central point of contention between the two foes, repeatedly leading to exchanges of fire despite an agreement aimed at ending the Middle East war that was struck last month.
The latest exchange was prompted by another Iranian attack on a commercial ship in the waterway whose crew was forced to abandon it after it went up in flames.
Before the war began with surprise US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, there was free passage through Hormuz, but Tehran now insists that it will control the strait, while Washington is adamant it cannot.
