A depiction of ships transiting the Hormuz Strait following the two-week provisional armistice reached between the United States and Iran with the stipulation that the strait be reopened, observed in Oman, April 08, 2026.Anadolu via Getty Images
Shortly after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s chairman, communicated on Wednesday that the Strait of Hormuz had resumed operations per a truce accord, Iran announced its closure and blamed Israel for breaching the arrangement.
A crucial aspect of the two-week truce deal agreed upon Tuesday night — only hours before Trump's deadline to respond to his ultimatum to obliterate a "whole civilization" should Iran fail to seek peace — mandates Iran to reinstate the essential waterway for commerce and petroleum to international shipping before peace negotiations can commence.
However, subsequent to permitting a select few vessels, encompassing a duo of oil tankers, to traverse the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, Iran stated its closure, accusing Israel of contravening the cessation of hostilities by initiating a substantial assault on Lebanon, as reported by Iran's Far News agency, linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
A depiction of ships transiting the Hormuz Strait following the two-week provisional armistice reached between the United States and Iran with the stipulation that the strait be reopened, observed in Oman, April 08, 2026.Anadolu via Getty Images
"The Iran-U.S. Ceasefire stipulations are definitive and explicit: the U.S. must determine — ceasefire or persistent warfare through Israel. It cannot maintain both," expressed Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Foreign Minister, in a social media communication. "The globe witnesses massacres occurring in Lebanon. The onus is on the U.S., and the world is observing whether it will honor its commitments."
Araghchi appended a social media communication from Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, emphasizing a segment, stating, Iran and the United States "have consented to an immediate cessation of hostilities everywhere, including Lebanon."
Firefighters douse lingering embers at the location of an Israeli air raid that struck a structure in Beirut, Lebanon, April 8, 2026.Hassan Ammar/AP
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) cautioned Israel and the United States on Wednesday that should the attacks on Lebanon persist, it will retaliate and dispense a "regrettable reprisal."
Sharif, instrumental in negotiating the ceasefire agreement, issued another declaration on social media on Wednesday following Israel's strike on Lebanon, stating, "Breaches of [the] ceasefire have been indicated at several locales across the conflict territory, thereby undermining the essence of the peace endeavor."
Timeline of events from the ultimatum issued by President Donald Trump to Iran to reinstate the Strait of Hormuz to the truce agreement achieved on April 7, 2026.Anadolu via Getty Images
Sharif, without specifying the locations of the violations, appended: "I earnestly and sincerely implore all factions to exhibit restraint and honor the ceasefire for two weeks, as stipulated, to enable diplomacy to assume a commanding position toward a peaceful resolution of the discord."
During a telephonic conversation on Wednesday with PBS, President Donald Trump asserted that Lebanon was not encompassed within the ceasefire arrangement, remarking that Hezbollah, Iran's surrogate, has initiated incursions against Israel from Lebanon.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt similarly conveyed during a press session Wednesday: "Lebanon is not a constituent of the ceasefire. This has been communicated to all entities engaged in the ceasefire."
Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf likewise accused the United States of contravening the proposed structure of the ceasefire delineated in Iran's 10-point peace overture.
Ghalibaf specifically denounced the U.S. for infringing upon three of its proposals, including Israel's Wednesday offensive on Lebanon, breaching Iran's airspace with an "invading drone," and negating Iran's entitlement to enrich uranium.
"The profound historical skepticism we maintain toward the United States originates from its recurrent violations of all manifestations of pledges – a pattern that has regrettably been reiterated once more," Ghalibaf articulated in a declaration.
Earlier on Wednesday, Hegseth asserted, "What has been concurred upon, what has been articulated, is that the strait is accessible."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth glances at Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, as they address members of the press during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, April 8, 2026.Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
"Our armed forces are observing. I am confident their military is observing as well, but commerce will circulate, and that is the reality that prompted the markets’ reaction," Hegseth commented.
In response to a query from ABC News during a Pentagon briefing Wednesday morning concerning the accessibility of the strait, Caine appended, "I believe so based on the diplomatic negotiation."
Trump communicated late Tuesday in a posting on his social media platform that Iran had consented to a "COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE REOPENING of the Strait of Hormuz." In a subsequent posting, Trump stated, the U.S. "will assist with managing the traffic aggregation in the Strait of Hormuz."
Hegseth remarked that the United States relies minimally on the strait for the conveyance of petroleum.
"It is incumbent upon the remainder of the global community to intensify efforts and ensure its sustained accessibility, subsequent to President Trump and the War Department compelling Iran to voluntarily reinstate it, as declared last night," Hegseth pronounced regarding the strait.
A first responder arises from the haze at the location of an Israeli air strike that struck an apartment edifice in Beirut, Lebanon, April 8, 2026.Bilal Hussein/AP
In a proclamation Tuesday night, Araghchi conveyed that Iran assented to a ceasefire and presented the United States with a 10-point counterproposal as a "general framework" for a peace concord.
"Should hostilities against Iran cease, our Potent Armed Forces will discontinue their defensive engagements," Araghchi declared. "For a duration of two weeks, secure transit through the Strait of Hormuz will be feasible via coordination with Iran's Armed Forces and with due regard for technical constraints."
Araghchi did not expound upon the "technical constraints," but Hegseth asserted on Wednesday that Iran's "command infrastructure is so diminished that they are scarcely able to converse and coordinate."
During a press conference in Hungary on Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance characterized the ceasefire as a "precarious truce."
"The Iranians have acceded to opening the strait. The United States has concurred to cease attacking, and … not solely the United States, but our allies as well have consented to halt attacks," Vance stated.
Ed Finley-Richardson, a shipping investment analyst for Contango Research, communicated to ABC News that antecedent to Iran asserting that Israel violated the ceasefire and closing the Strait of Hormuz, shipowners were "sufficiently optimistic to undertake substantial preparations to depart the Strait."
"The overnight intelligence from both Washington and Tehran engendered an atmosphere of optimism, a first since the onset of the war. The optimism was such that charterers initiated work on new cargo loadings, marking the first instance of cargo scheduled from within the gulf since the commencement of hostilities," Findley-Richardson conveyed.
He appended, "All of that dissolved when Iran determined that the ceasefire had been compromised. Nevertheless, it is evident that conditions are conducive for at least a partial recommencement of shipping traffic."
Prior to Iran communicating its renewed closure of the strait, the Danish shipping corporation Maersk, one of the foremost container shipping entities globally, asserted in a statement to ABC News that the ceasefire "may afford transit opportunities, yet it does not yet furnish maritime certitude."
Maersk communicated that information pertaining to the ceasefire remained "highly constrained" and that it necessitated "additional clarification" prior to dispatching ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
"The welfare of our seafarers, vessels, and cargo remains Maersk’s paramount priority," the corporation conveyed. "Any resolution to transit the Strait of Hormuz will be predicated on continuous hazard evaluations, meticulous surveillance of the security milieu, and available guidance from pertinent authorities and collaborators."
Sourse: abcnews.go.com