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Traffic through strait of Hormuz plummets after US and Iran trade strikes – Middle East crisis live

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Trump claims the US will control strait of Hormuz and get paid for it

President ⁠Donald Trump said on Monday that ⁠the ⁠United States ​would probably take over ⁠the strait of Hormuz and should ⁠be reimbursed for ​controlling ‌the vital ‌waterway.

“We’re going to ‌keep the strait, and we’ll probably run it. We’ll become the guardian ‌of the strait.

‘Maybe we’ll ​call it the guardian angel of the strait. And ⁠we should be ​reimbursed ​for that,” he ​said in ​a ‌phone interview ​on ​Fox News’ Fox + Friends program.

Key events

Yemen’s internationally-recognised government said it struck Sanaa airport on Monday, as the Houthis blamed the government’s Saudi backer for the attack.

The government said it wanted to prevent an Iranian plane from landing in the Yemeni capital, after they failed to convince the Houthi delegation that went to Tehran for the late supreme leader’s funeral to board a Yemenia flight instead.

“The terrorist Houthi militias – backed by the Iranian regime – prevented Yemeni national aircraft from landing at the airport in the capital, Sanaa, while insisting on allowing an Iranian plane to violate Yemeni territory; consequently, the airport runway was targeted,” the Yemeni defence ministry said.

The Houthi’s al-Masirah TV had previously reported that “Saudi aggression targeted the departure and landing runways at the Sanaa international airport”.

Andrew Sparrow

Andrew Sparrow

The UK government has announced that it is in effect proscribing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). It is doing so using new powers under the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026.

Ministers have been under pressure for years to proscribe the IRGC, which backs terrorist activity outside Iran.

But the last Conservative government, and Labour when it took power, argued that it would be difficult to use laws intended to target terrorist organisations against a state-run organisation.

You can read more in our UK politics live blog:

UK to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as terrorist organisation

Kiran Stacey

Kiran Stacey

The UK will list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation, ministers have announced, in a major escalation of the diplomatic tensions between London and Tehran.

The Home Office said on Monday it would ban support for the IRGC, a central branch of the Iranian military, after years of political division over the issue. The move is equivalent to proscription, though not legally identical.

Ministers are also set to outlaw the the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), which has been blamed for a series of attacks on Jewish targets in the UK, and the Russian Federation Volunteer Corps (GRU), an international branch of Russian military intelligence.

The Home Office said in a statement:

double quotation markHaving carefully considered all the evidence, the home secretary has concluded that there is sufficient basis to reasonably believe that each of these bodies is engaged in foreign power threat activity, and that each designation is necessary to protect the safety and interests of the United Kingdom.

The government said it was proscribing the IRGC after a number of threats on UK soil, including a plot to assassinate two Iran International television journalists, as well a cyber-attacks on British targets.

US 'military aggression' turned strait of Hormuz into 'high-risk zone', Iran embassy in UK says

In a statement published to social media, the Iranian embassy in the UK claims Tehran is complying with the memorandum of understanding with the US, having established “a temporary safe and secure maritime corridor” free of “technical and military barriers”.

“Meanwhile, the US which has done nothing but violate the MoU since day one, is pushing vessels toward a dangerous southern parallel route,” it wrote on X. See the post at 11.18 which explains the southern vs northern routes through the strait of Hormuz.

“That route is not only legally questionable but also unsafe, unreliable, and prone to accidents. Adding to the threat, US military aggression, including attacks on Iran’s port & tower infrastructure, has turned the strait of Hormuz into a tense, high-risk zone for maritime traffic,” the embassy, based in London, wrote.

“Those who enabled this perilous situation must reconsider their stance, if they truly seek safe passage through the strait of Hormuz. Security is a two-way street.”

Three boys play in the shallow waters of the strait of Hormuz, as a plume of smoke rises from an explosion in the background off the Iranian city of Bandar Abbas.
Three boys play in the shallow waters of the strait of Hormuz, as a plume of smoke rises from an explosion in the background off the Iranian city of Bandar Abbas. Photograph: Razieh Poudat/ISNA via AP

The US has said its forces were prepared to ensure “freedom of navigation” across the strait, declaring the waterway open to all commercial vessels.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, a US-led military organisation, has recommended vessels take a route through Omani territorial waters in the south of the strait, rather than the Iranian-approved northern route.

Explosions have been heard around Iran’s Bandar Abbas city and Qeshm island, according to Iranian media reports. There have been no immediate reports of any casualties or damage done to residential infrastructure.

Bahrain army accuses Iran of targeting civilians

Bahrain’s military has accused Iran of targeting civilians with its latest attacks on the country, after Tehran said it had struck US military facilities and infrastructure there earlier.

“Iran continues its systematic hostile approach through its heinous attacks with missiles and drones that target civilians in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” the general command of Bahrain’s military said, adding that air defences “intercepted and destroyed a number of Iranian aerial attacks” this morning.

Sirens have sounded a number of times in Bahrain today, with authorities urging citizens to head to safe locations.

Gaza’s health ministry said in its latest update that at least 7 people were killed and 32 others injured in Israeli attacks across the territory over the past day. It said one other person who had been previously wounded in an attack had died after succumbing to his injuries.

The health ministry says 1,108 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the ‘ceasefire’ between Israel and Hamas came into effect in October 2025.

It says that 73,231 people, many of whom were women and children, have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since October 2023, when Israel launched its assault on the territory following the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.

Traffic through strait of Hormuz plummets after US-Iran strikes

Traffic through the strait of Hormuz dropped sharply after Iran attacked a Cypriot-flagged container ship on Saturday, triggering an exchange of attacks with the US.

There were only 14 crossings through the waterway on Sunday, according to data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler. This is reportedly the lowest level in at least a month. It is possible that other vessels could have crossed with their transmitters turned off.

Kpler said more vessels have been using so-called “dark routes” whereby ships limit or switch off their visibility so their position isn’t shown.

“Confirmed strait of Hormuz crossings declined by around 52% week on week over 10 to 12 July, with traffic reverting to more defensive routing patterns,” Kpler said.

“Renewed US Iran tensions and IRGC warnings continue to drive heightened caution across commercial shipping.”

The plummeting traffic through the strait suggests vessels are staying put out of fear of more attacks, even as the US insists the waterway is open to commercial traffic.

Esmail Baghaei also told the media briefing that Iran is ‌trying to ⁠agree ⁠a joint mechanism with Oman for the management of the strait of Hormuz but claimed that US pressure on Oman has hindered ⁠efforts. He did not say how exactly the US is pressuring Oman.

During talks on Saturday aimed at resolving the standoff over the strait, Oman proposed a plan to fully reopen both shipping lanes through the waterway, according to US outlet Axios, citing a diplomat briefed on the negotiations.

The report said that under the proposal the southern route through Omani waters would reopen without the need for prior approval, reverting back to the position in place pre-war.

Iran map.

The Iranian delegation, however, was unable to gain approval for the plan in Oman and took it back to Tehran for internal deliberations, the diplomat told Axios.

The US is demanding that Iran publicly state it will stop attacks on ships in the strait - and that all lanes will be open with no tolls through the waterway.

Iran has laid out a system of lanes through the north of the strait close to the Iranian coast, where Tehran can try to justify charging tolls or fees, and has insisted that all vessels use this route (or face consequences).

Vessels at the strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on 12 July 2026.
Vessels at the strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on 12 July 2026. Photograph: Reuters

Iran says it won't honour memorandum of understanding as long as US fails to - spokesperson

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, has been speaking at a press conference in Tehran, the Iranian capital.

He suggested that Iran would not abide by the memorandum of understanding signed with the US last month if Washington failed to uphold its commitments to end the war.

“Each time that the other party has failed to meet its obligations, we did not uphold ours... We will continue to act in this manner,” Baghaei said.

“No one can accuse the Islamic Republic of Iran of violating its promises,” he was quoted as having said by Al Jazeera.

“In all cases, our obligations and those of the other party are clear, and it can be proven in a documented manner that the other party has violated various parts of this memorandum of understanding under various pretexts.”

Iran has accused the US of violating the agreement by attacking Iran’s transportation infrastructure and cargo vessels, among other things, and has also accused the US of using territory and facilities in Gulf countries to prepare attacks against it.

Baghaei said Iran’s “defensive strikes” were only targeted at bases and facilities used by the US to attack the country. “We will not hesitate in our self-defence,” he was quoted as having said.

Esmail Baghaei attends a press conference at the ministry of foreign affairs in Tehran in May.
Esmail Baghaei attends a press conference at the ministry of foreign affairs in Tehran in May. Photograph: Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images

Oil prices jumped again on Monday as the US and Iran traded their latest attacks, with Brent crude, the global benchmark wholesale oil price, rising 4.2% to $79.18 a barrel in early London trading.

Jefferies analyst Mohit Kumar said:

double quotation markFor now, we remain hopeful that both parties would return to the negotiating table and traffic would start to flow through the strait. We are not looking for oil prices to go back to the March highs.

You can keep up with all the latest market reaction in our business live blog here:

What are the state of US-Iran talks?

Julian Borger

Julian Borger

A US-Iranian memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed on 17 June extended a ceasefire in the war by 60 days to allow the restoration of trade through the strait of Hormuz and create breathing space for talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme and sanctions relief, the main points of contention between Iran and the west.

Apart from some indirect technical talks, those negotiations have failed to materialise, and fighting has continued between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, which was supposed to be covered by the agreement.

The MoU started to unravel when Iran attacked three commercial vessels last Monday as they were crossing the strait along a southern route next to the Omani coast that the Iranians said they had not approved. This drew US missile attacks in response, beginning almost a week of tit-for-tat exchanges.

Tehran is determined that any long-term settlement in the region recognises its control over the strait, which it seized soon after the US-Israel attack on Iran in February.

On Sunday, Mohsen Rezaee, a senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was quoted in state media as saying: “This strategic passage is more important than dozens of atomic bombs, and the Islamic Republic of Iran will protect it.”

Trump restarts war with Iran and plays nice(ish) with Nato | Politics Weekly America

The deputy governor of Isfahan province said one person has been killed and seven others injured in a US attack on a military base in the Iranian city of Nain, according to a report in Iran’s Mehr news agency which we have not been able to independently verify.

In a series of social media posts this morning, Oman’s interior ministry said sirens were being activated and urged residents to head to the nearest safe place and await further instructions.

As we mentioned in the opening post, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said earlier that it had attacked radar systems in Oman as part of its counter strikes against the US.

Iran launches attacks on American military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait after fresh US strikes

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said this morning they targeted American ⁠military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, ⁠destroyed radar systems in Oman and ​struck fuel tanks and ammunition depots at Prince Hassan air base in Jordan as part of its retaliatory strikes against the US.

Jordan said a few hours ago that it intercepted and downed four missiles fired from Iranian territory, while Kuwait’s military said it was intercepting “hostile aerial targets” in the country’s airspace.

The strikes marked an escalation in the recent tit-for-tat attacks between the US and Iran as Tehran seeks to assert sovereignty over the strategic strait of Hormuz, which it sees as its biggest leverage in negotiations with Washington.

Explosions at an unknown location following what US Central Command (Centcom) said were strikes on Iran. The screengrab was taken from a video released on 12 July 2026.
Explosions at an unknown location following what US Central Command (Centcom) said were strikes on Iran. The screengrab was taken from a video released on 12 July 2026. Photograph: US Central Command/Reuters

The Iranian attacks on US-allied countries across the region came in retaliation to overnight US strikes on “dozens” of Iranian sites, including air defence systems, radar sites, missile and drone equipment and small boats.

“The strait of Hormuz is a vital maritime corridor for global trade,” the US military’s Central Command said. “Iran does not control it.”

But Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, which controls the country’s ballistic missile arsenal, rejected the US statement, saying the strait “is our territory” and it would not allow Washington’s “illegal interference in it”.

Iran and the US are nearly midway through the 60-day period of an interim deal that was supposed to set-up talks for a permanent end to the war launched by the US and Israel in late February.

Instead, it has devolved into a series of attacks over the strait, through which one fifth of the world’s oil and gas usually flows, and its future.

The US president, Donald Trump, suggested last week that the interim deal in the war was “over”. But mediators – including Pakistan, Qatar and Egypt – have continued efforts to reach a final agreement.

Cargo ships anchoring near the strait of Hormuz off the UAE’s eastern coast on Sunday.
Cargo ships anchoring near the strait of Hormuz off the UAE’s eastern coast on Sunday. Photograph: AFPTV/AFP/Getty Images

In other key developments: