Iran says it can restrict Hormuz transit, accuses EU of 'hypocrisy'

The United Arab Emirates said on Saturday that Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed met Britain’s Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper.

They discussed what the UAE described as “terrorist” Iranian missile attacks on the UAE and other countries, as well as regional developments following a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran.

US Central Command said on Saturday that its naval forces, including the guided-missile destroyers are enforcing a blockade on Iranian ports.

"Guided-missile destroyer USS Pinckney (DDG 91) patrols regional waters in support of blockade operations. The blockade has completely halted economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea," CENTCOM posted on X.

An Iranian delegation headed by IRGC Quds Force commander Esmail Qa'ani has arrived in Baghdad to mediate between Iraqi Shiite leaders, as disputes continue to stall the formation of a new government.

Abdul Rahman Al-Jazaeri, a commander in the Popular Mobilization Forces, told Kurdistan24 the mission aims to resolve internal disagreements and accelerate the selection of a prime minister.

Qaani held four meetings with leaders of Shiite political and armed factions before leaving Baghdad, after which Trump’s special envoy Tom Barrack arrived in the city, according to Kurdistan24.

Both sides are focused on selecting a prime minister and forming a government.

Iran’s parliament speaker said in a televised interview on Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz is under the control of the Islamic Republic, and transit through the waterway will remain restricted unless the US ends the blockade of Iranian ports.

Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf said efforts by the United States to conduct mine-clearing operations in the waterway constitute a “violation of the ceasefire.”

He said Iran had warned the US delegation in Islamabad that if their mine-sweeper “moves even slightly forward,” it would be targeted.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said the Strait of Hormuz has been closed from Saturday afternoon, citing what it described as a US failure to lift its naval blockade despite ceasefire conditions.

The IRGC navy’s public relations office said that prior to the announcement, several civilian vessels had been allowed to pass through the strait via the Larak corridor under its supervision and coordination.

However, it said, the Islamic Republic shut the strategic waterway after a violation of ceasefire commitments, accusing the United States of maintaining its maritime restrictions on Iranian vessels and ports.

“The Strait of Hormuz is closed from this evening until the naval blockade is lifted,” the statement said.

The force warned that any vessel moving from its anchorage in the Persian Gulf or the Sea of Oman toward the strait would be considered as cooperating with the enemy and could be targeted.

It also instructed ship operators to follow updates exclusively through official IRGC navy channels on maritime communication channel 16, dismissing statements by the US president as lacking credibility.