Iran closes Strait of Hormuz less than a day after reopening it: live

Gunfire has been reported after at least two ships tried to navigate through the Strait of Hormuz.

Maritime sources suggested that the vessels had received fire after trying to cross the strait after Iran’s earlier announcement it had again closed it to traffic.

It is believed that one of the affected vessels may be an Indian oil tanker, although this has not been independently confirmed.

The UKMTO said it had received a report of a tanker being approached by two IRGC gun boats, around 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman.

These boats are said to have fired on the tanker. All crew are safe and accounted for, the agency added.

The Strait of Hormuz has again been closed to international shipping, Iran has said.

State broadcaster IRIB confirmed in the last few minutes the shipping route, which sees 20 per cent of global oil and gas pass through it each year, is ‘closed’ and any passage requires approval from Tehran.

Iran had earlier allowed a convoy of ships to pass for the first time since the outbreak of the conflict.

But after it became clear the US was continuing a blockade against Iranian ships, Tehran has once again implemented the closure, a spokesperson said.

For this reason, control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state, and this strategic strait is under the strict management and control of the armed forces.

As long as the United States does not end the complete freedom of passage of vessels from Iran to destination and from destination to Iran, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will remain under strict control and in its previous state.

Merchant ships have been pictured at anchor in and around the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran earlier announced it had closed it – less than 24 hours after saying it was ‘completely open’.

US Central Command has announced that it has forced a total of 23 ships to turn around near the Strait of Hormuz since its naval blockade was established.

It said AH-64 Apaches – a model of attack helicopter – fly above region to provide ‘a visible presence in support of freedom of navigation’.

Iran closed the strait again in response to the continued American naval blockade in the Arabian Sea.

President Macron has posted on X saying a French soldier who was taking part in an international peacekeeping mission in Lebanon was killed this morning in the south of the country.

Three other soldiers were wounded and evacuated during the attack against the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil)’s peacekeeping mission, the French president says, and adds available information suggests that Hezbollah is responsible.

He demands the Lebanese authorities immediately arrest the alleged perpetrators.

Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has strongly condemned the attack on Unifil’s French peacekeepers.

‘I have issued strict instructions to conduct an immediate investigation to uncover the circumstances of this attack and to hold the perpetrators accountable,” he says in a post on X.

‘It goes without saying that this irresponsible behaviour causes great harm to Lebanon and its relations with friendly countries around the world that support it.’

Salam did not elaborate on who carried out the attack.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard are showing ‘very reckless behaviour’ in the Strait of Hormuz, a former Qatari security official has told Sky News.

‘If these reports are true, it’s very reckless behaviour by the IRGC,’ Nawaf al Thani, Qatar’s former director of defence intelligence operations to the US, said.

Qatar is bordering the strait, which Iran closed again this morning, creating ‘a very dangerous situation’ in the narrow lane, Al Thani added.

The two ships that came under fire from the Revolution Guard were Indian vessels, according to channel 16 audio recordings.

One of which was a VLVV supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil.

It comes after gunfire was reported as a convoy of ships tried to navigate through the Strait of Hormuz.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has condemned an attack on French United Nations peacekeepers in southern Lebanon and ordered an investigation into the incident.

‘I condemn in the strongest terms today’s attack on members of the French battalion in UNIFIL,’ Salam said, referring to the peacekeepers, adding that he gave ‘strict instructions for an immediate investigation to uncover the circumstances of this attack and hold the perpetrators accountable’.

A spokesperson for UNIFIL confirmed that an incident involving their peacekeepers took place in Ghandouriyeh, southern Lebanon, without giving additional details on the nature of the attack or casualties.

The Israeli Defence Forces said on Saturday that it had carried out strikes against ‘terrorists’ in southern Lebanon, who it accused of violating its ‘Yellow Line’.

The Israeli military said it had established the demarcation, thought to separate its forces from territory held by Hezbollah, adding that it had struck suspected militants approaching its troops along the line.

‘Over the past 24 hours, IDF forces operating south of the Yellow Line in southern Lebanon identified terrorists who violated the ceasefire understandings and approached the forces from north of the Yellow Line in a manner that posed an immediate threat,’ the military said, referring to such a line for the first time since a ceasefire came into effect.

In a post in English on social media, the IDF added: ‘In order to remove the threat, the IDF conducted precise strikes against the terrorists and terrorist infrastructure sites.’

Israel is currently occupying large parts of southern Lebanon, having issued widespread evacuation orders following it moving into the country amid its war with Hezbollah.

A fragile ceasefire was agreed late on Thursday.

Iran’s navy has sent a radio warning to ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Merchant vessels have reported receiving an alert from Tehran’s military telling them that no ships are allowed to pass through as the strait is closed.

An Iranian minister has said that US President Donald Trump ‘talks a lot’, adding that no date has been set for the next round of talks between the two nations.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Saeed Khatibzadeh told journalists on the sidelines of an annual Turkish diplomatic forum on Saturday: ‘The American side tweets a lot, talks a lot. Sometimes confusing, sometimes, you know, contradictory.’

He added no date has been set for further talks between the two sides, following the implementation of a temporary ceasefire.

‘Until we agree on the framework, we cannot set the date,’ Mr Khatibzadeh sai

Earlier, Washington threatened fresh strikes if no deal was reached with Tehran.

Iran’s supreme leader has warned his navy is ready to ‘inflict bitter defeats’ on the country’s enemies, as fresh gunfire was reported in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a lengthy post on Telegram on Saturday, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei praised the nation’s army and navy and accused the US and Israel of ‘arrogance’.

Khamenei has not been seen since the outbreak of the conflict on February 28, with rumours he was gravely injured in an airstrike by the US and Israel.

His statement read:

The Islamic Army is now courageously defending the land, water, and flag that belong to it, just as it did in the previous two imposed wars.

With its strong support from God and the people, in compact, solid ranks, and standing side by side with their comrades from the other armed forces, it’s battling the two leading armies of unbelief and Arrogance.

And the Islamic Army has exposed those armies’ weakness and abjectness to the world.

In the same way that its drones strike the US and the Zionist murderers like lightning, its valiant navy is also ready to inflict new bitter defeats on its enemies.