During the truce between Israel and Lebanon on Friday, Iran said that the Strait of Hormuz was open for all commercial traffic.
Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post, “Under the terms of the ceasefire in Lebanon, the Strait of Hormuz is fully open for all commercial ships for the remainder of the ceasefire.” Araghchi said, though, that ships must go through a “coordinated route” that was announced by Iran’s maritime officials.
After the news came out, the price of oil dropped by more than 11%.
Jerusalem and Beirut decided on Thursday to end their fighting for 10 days, beginning that evening at 5 p.m. ET. There has been trouble in talks between Washington and Tehran because of Israel’s military operation in Lebanon against the militant group Hezbollah, which is a close ally of Iran.
Iran agreed to fully open the strait in return for a two-week ceasefire on April 7. But Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, said that the U.S. was breaking the deal by letting Israel keep fighting in Lebanon.
During the U.S.-Iran peace, the strait has stayed mostly the same while the two countries argued over the terms of the deal. Every day, only a few business boats pass through the waterway.
