By Jared Malsin
The insistence of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, along with renewed attacks on civilian ships in the waterway Saturday, crushed nascent hopes in the shipping industry for an opening of the crucial route, maritime analysts said.
The attacks, the first since a cease-fire between the U.S. and Iran that expires next week, came along with a warning from Iran's armed forces that the strait "is strictly controlled and remains in the previous state."
"Essentially we are back where we started," said Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of specialist industry publication Lloyd's List. Some 20 ships lining up to cross the Strait of Hormuz were turning back toward Oman on Saturday.
The incidents targeting a tanker and a container ship, and the Revolutionary Guards warning, came after Iran's foreign minister on Friday said the strait was "completely open," an announcement welcomed by President Trump, who said the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remained in place. The divergent messages from Iran's political and military establishment heightened concerns about the difficulty of opening the strait even through a diplomatic agreement with Iran, analysts said.
"The IRGC is vetoing whatever the foreign minister is doing. I mean, they couldn't be more clear," said Yoruk Isik, the head of the ship-tracking consultancy Bosphorus Observer.
Saturday's attacks also showed the persistent threat of the Revolutionary Guards' small fast-attack boats. U.S. strikes sank many of the larger ships in Iran's naval forces but Iran still has hundreds of smaller boats that can threaten civilian shipping, analysts say.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 18, 2026 09:43 ET (13:43 GMT)
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