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Iran Says Strait of Hormuz Remains Open During Ceasefire Period

Iran Says Strait of Hormuz Remains Open During Ceasefire Period

According to Al Jazeera, Iran’s Defense Ministry said the Strait of Hormuz reopening remains conditional on a ceasefire and other requirements, while warning that vessels tied to hostile forces have no right of passage.

Fact Check
The core claim is well supported. CoinDesk's report and Al Jazeera's liveblog independently quote or paraphrase the same key statement from Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi that commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz is 'completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire' (CoinDesk; Al Jazeera liveblog). The second part of the user's statement, that previously announced routes remain unchanged, is not quoted verbatim in the fetched evidence, but PBS/AP shows Araghchi had earlier specified that passage would continue under coordination with Iran's armed forces and subject to technical limitations, while BBC Verify notes Iranian forces had already published permitted routes through the strait. Together, those sources support the idea that passage was reopened under existing announced routing conditions rather than a newly changed scheme. I did not fetch a primary Iranian government page directly, so the exact attribution to the Ports and Maritime Organization is less firmly established than the attribution to Araghchi. Still, the substance of the statement is strongly corroborated.
Summary

Iran’s position on traffic through the Strait of Hormuz now includes additional conditions beyond the earlier statement that commercial vessels could continue transiting during the ceasefire period. According to Al Jazeera on April 18, a Defense Ministry spokesperson said reopening of the waterway depends on a ceasefire and other unspecified conditions, described the current status as temporary, and said warships and vessels linked to hostile forces have no right of passage. This adds a more restrictive security-focused message to earlier statements from Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization and Foreign Minister Araghchi that commercial transit routes remained unchanged during the ceasefire.

Terms & Concepts
  • Strait of Hormuz: A strategically important waterway between Iran and Oman that serves as a major route for global oil and gas shipments.
  • Ceasefire: A temporary suspension of hostilities between parties in a conflict, typically intended to reduce immediate tensions.