Iran Says Tankers Are Suspended at Hormuz Due to Israeli Attack on Lebanon
The hastily announced ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran appears to already be on shaky ground as disputes have emerged over its terms. Iran’s Fars News Agency reported that the leaders were suspending tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz after Israel launched a large-scale attack on Lebanon, while the White House insisted the Strait is open and traffic is increasing.
Fars posted a message saying that Iran had permitted two tankers to transit the Strait of Hormuz earlier in the day. However, it said that simultaneously with the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, the passage of oil tankers was suspended. The Tasnim News Agency and Press TV also said Iran might quit the ceasefire if the strikes on Lebanon continued.
The Israelis reported attacks on multiple sites, including Beirut, the Beqaa Valley, and southern Lebanon. They said the strikes were targeting command and military sites linked to Hezbollah. Lebanese officials are reporting widespread casualties.
Tracking services spotted a tanker approaching the Strait and then making a 180-degree U-turn, which Fars quickly reported. The vessel was identified as the Auroura, a 48,000-dwt Panama-flagged product tanker linked to India and under U.S. sanctions. The vessel has also been linked to Iran, making it an unlikely vessel to have been denied transit. However, it appeared to head for Oman.
Asked about the situation, Donald Trump told an interviewer from the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) that Lebanon was a “separate skirmish.” He said that Hezbollah was not included in the ceasefire deal announced last night.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Levitt also called it “false” reporting. “This is a case of what they’re saying publicly is different privately,” she said, according to CNBC. “We have seen an uptick of traffic in the Strait today,” she asserted. She also repeated Trump’s expectation and demand that the Strait be “reopened immediately, quickly, and safely.”
Similarly, during another press briefing, Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted that “the Strait is open.” He was speaking with Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Cane, who also said he believed the Strait is open. He, however, said the U.S. was ready to resume actions if so directed by the president.
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Hegseth blamed drone and missile attacks by Iran on the UAE, Kuwait, and Bahrain after the announcement of the ceasefire on a lack of communication and the disjointed situation in Iran. However, the Iranian media said they were retaliation for continuing strikes on Iran and asserted that the UAE had launched air strikes, including, according to Fars, an “attack on the Lavan refinery was carried out by Emirati fighter jets.”
Fox News was reporting that 10 ships were scheduled to transit the Strait of Hormuz today, April 8. Track services, however, could only confirm two or three vessels and said they were all bulkers.Fars confirmed that only three ships were permitted to make the transit today, identifying two as Iranian tankers and the third as a Chinese tanker. It asserted that "Trump has agreed that the Strait will remain in Iran's hands." It made no mention of resuming transits tomorrow.
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