Trump announces Iran naval blockade, says US will be 'guardian' of Strait of Hormuz

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US-Iran war latest updates: A blast was also heard in the southern city of Bushehr at 3:10am local time (23:40 GMT Monday), according to Iran's Mehr news agency cited by Al Jazeera. No comment has come from official sources yet.

Separately, Mehr news agency said US projectiles hit the city of Omidiyeh in Iran's southwestern Khuzestan Province. Citing a local official, the agency said at least four people were hurt in the attack, as per Al Jazeera.

Explosions were also reported in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, along with the islands of Kish, Qeshm and Abu Musa, according to Iranian media cited by CNN.

Some reports said that explosions were also heard in Konarak on Monday. However, there is no official statement yet.

Oil prices surged Monday as traders assessed President Trump's announcement that the US will reimpose a blockade of Iranian ports.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, soared 9.59% to settle at $83.30 per barrel, its highest settle level since June 12. Brent posted its biggest single-day percent gain in over six years.

WTI, the US oil benchmark, rose about 9.4% to close at $78.14 per barrel, its highest closing price since June 15.

US-Iran war latest updates: Sirens have gone off across Bahrain, with authorities urging people to take shelter right away. The Ministry of Interior told the public to “remain calm and head to the nearest safe place” as the alarms sounded.

Another post said, “The siren has been sounded , Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place.”

President Donald Trump on Monday cast his memorandum of understanding with Iran as a “test” that he would have preferred to skip.

“It's a standard tactic in the US that you go to a memorandum of understanding and then you go to the deal. I said, ‘Just go to the deal first,’” Trump said during an appearance on The Hugh Hewitt Show.

He continued: “But you know what? It was sort of a test, and they weren't there. They didn't honor the test.”

“Memorandum of understanding when you're dealing with sleazebags don't mean much, and they don't mean much when you're dealing with honorable people, too, because it's a memorandum of understanding - it doesn't mean much,” Trump told Hewitt.

US-Iran war latest updates: The UAE's Defence Ministry says two of its oil tankers were targeted by two Iranian cruise missiles in Omani waters in the Strait of Hormuz. An Indian national crew member was killed in the attack on the Mombasa tanker, with eight others wounded, it added.

“The Ministry of Defense announces that the national tankers (Mombasa) and (Bahia) were targeted by two Iranian cruise missiles in the southern passage of the Strait of Hormuz in Omani territorial waters,” the statement said.

“The targeting resulted in the death of one crew member of the tanker (Mombasa), of Indian nationality, and the injury of 8 others, including 4 serious injuries (6 of Indian nationality, and 2 of Ukrainian nationality)," it added.

Full statement here.

US-Iran war latest updates: Several explosions have been heard in Jam, a city in southern Iran's Bushehr province, along with Qeshm Island, according to Iran's Fars news agency, as cited by Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, three explosions were reported in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas early Tuesday local time, according to Iran's state-run news agency IRNA, as per CNN.

No further details were given but the report comes as the United States launched a fresh round of strikes on Iran, according to US Central Command.

The US launched fresh strikes against Iran on President Donald Trump's orders, US Central Command said in a social media post on Monday.

“At 4:45 p.m. ET today, U.S. Central Command began launching the third consecutive night of strikes against Iran, at the Commander in Chief's direction. These strikes will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack innocent civilians and commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM said.

US-Iran war latest updates: Iran's army says it carried out a drone attack on US military targets in Kuwait. According to a statement shared by state broadcaster IRIB cited by Al Jazeera. the army launched drones targeting a US Patriot missile system, fuel tanks, a watchtower, an ammunition depot and communication systems.

Additionally, Iran's navy fired cruise missiles at what it called a "hostile vessel of the American enemy," according to IRIB, which cited an unnamed military source.

IRIB also reported attacks across the region, including on Gulf Arab states, as the US confirmed it will begin blockading Iranian ports from 20:00 GMT on Tuesday.

US-Iran war latest updates: The US is going to hit Iran hard on Monday night and Tuesday, Trump has told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt cited by Al Jazeera.

When asked about the MoU, Trump said it was a test for Iran, which they did not honor.

Earlier The New York Times reported that Trump has formally told Congress that fighting with Iran has started again, showing that the ceasefire is falling apart.

This has triggered a fight over important war powers. Congress has told the president to either end the war or ask for approval to continue it, but Trump maintains that he alone has the authority to make that decision. The letter, dated Friday, was obtained by The New York Times on Monday.

As per CNN, at least six commercial vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours as the US-Iran ceasefire falls apart, according to MarineTraffic data.

Two cargo ships entered the Persian Gulf, while four vessels left the area, two cargo ships and two tankers. This is slightly fewer than the already reduced number of ships crossing in recent days after indirect talks between the US and Iran broke down.

Before the war, roughly 110 vessels passed through the strait each day on average.

Additionally, open-source data also shows a slight increase in “GPS spoofing” in the area. This is a type of navigational interference that makes ships appear to be in the wrong location.

US-Iran war latest updates: Iran's state news agency IRNA is reporting new explosions in eastern Bandar Abbas. The cause of the explosions remains unknown.

Meanwhile, Iran's Tasnim news agency is reporting that air defences have been activated in Bandar Abbas, where sounds of explosions were reported, as per Al Jazeera.

At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces will resume blockading maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports on July 14 at 4pm ET, as per a statement.

“CENTCOM forces will enforce the blockade against vessels transiting to or from Iranian ports and coastal areas,” it wrote in a social media post.

“The U.S. military continues to support traffic flow through regional waters for all vessels not violating the blockade.”

Iran's Foreign Minister Araghchi has said the country has “always been the guardian of the Strait and will remain so forever.”

This comes after President Trump announced that the US will levy a charge on vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on X, Araghchi shared his full statement: “POTUS is absolutely right. Whoever provides secure and safe passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz should be compensated for this service. Iran has always been the GUARDIAN of the Strait and will remain so FOREVER. 20% is of course too much. We will be fair.”

US-Iran war latest updates: As per Al Jazeera, a member of the Houthi group's political bureau, Mohammad al-Bukhaiti, has said the group will hit Saudi Arabia's “vital infrastructure” in response to the attack on Sanaa airport, according to local media.

US-Iran war LIVE: Iran will continue to fight for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a senior official said after US President Donald Trump's remarks that America would be the “guardian” of the waterway.

“We defend it so that in the future – for the passage of our ships – we are not forced to pay tribute to the enemy,” Mohammed Mokhber, a senior adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, said in a post on X. He added, “Retreating from this vital matter has no place in the mind of any friend of Iran.”

US-Iran war LIVE: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has raised concern regarding the renewed escalation of military confrontation in West Asia.

Guterres expressed “deep concern at the serious escalation of renewed military confrontation in the Gulf region, including Iranian attacks on ships on the Strait of Hormuz, attacks by the United States on the Islamic Republic of Iran, and attacks by Iran on targets in neighboring countries”, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said, according to AFP.

US-Iran war LIVE: An Iranian-born engineer was convicted on Monday of US charges accusing him of conspiringto illegally export technology with potential application in military drones to a company in Iran whose customers included the country's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Reuters news agency reported.

The dual US-Iranian citizen, identified as Mahdi Sadeghi, was found guilty by a federal jury in Boston on three counts. He had worked at Analog Devices prior to his December 2024 arrest. The jury found Sadeghi not guilty on two other counts alleging violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

US-Iran war LIVE: The International Maritime Organisation is against charging feeds for any strait used for international navigation, its spokesperson said, according to Reuters news agency. The UN shipping agency said it is awaiting further details on the comment made by US President Donald Trump regarding America charging 20 per cent for cargo shipping through Hormuz.

The spokesperson said there was no legal basis for introducing mandatory tolls for transit through a strait.

US-Iran war LIVE: A small number of vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, despite the heightened security threats, AFP reported. According to data from maritime tracker Kpler, 14 vessels, half of which were commercial ships, crossed on Sunday.

US-Iran war LIVE: US forces struck an Iranian submarine and ship maintenance facility in Iran on Sunday using one-way attack drones, the US Central Command said on Monday.

“Three Corsair unmanned surface vessels hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations. Last night’s strikes degraded Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial shipping,” the CENTCOM said in a post on X.

US-Iran war LIVE: After a brief closure, the Yemen civil aviation authority issued a circular informing airlines that all airports nationwide had reopened, Reuters news agency reported.

Yemen's internationally-recognised government said it struck Houthi-controlled Sanaa airport on Monday, its biggest flare-up in years with the rebels, who blamed the authorities' Saudi backers for the attack and threatened retaliation.

The government had then ordered all airports in the country shut.

US-Iran war LIVE: Brent crude futures jumped 5 per cent after US President Donald Trump said America was reinstating the naval blockade on Iran, Reuters news agency reported.

US-Iran war LIVE: US President Donald Trump on Monday said US would reinstate the naval blockade on Iran. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said, “We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving.”

He said the other countries will have “fair and open use” of the waterway, adding that the US would be known as the “guardian of the Hormuz strait.” “The process and formation will begin immediately,” the US President added.

US-Iran war LIVE: US President Donald Trump said on Monday said US would be reinstating the naval blockade in Iran, adding that Washington would also be reimbursed 20 per cent on all cargo shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said the process would begin immediately, without elaborating.