U.S. to reimpose blockade of Iran as fighting over Strait of Hormuz mounts

The United States launched its third consecutive day of strikes against Iranian forces Monday evening, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command.  The strikes were ordered by President Donald Trump and would impose a heavy cost on Iranian forces, as well as degrade their ability to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command wrote.

The United States would immediately reinstate its blockade of all Iranian ports and ships in the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier on Monday. The strait was open to all other countries and would remain so, he said. However, the United States would charge a 20% toll on shipping through the strait to cover security costs, he said.

Iranian authorities said they would not allow any U.S. management of the strait, and that their forces would target any commercial vessels not approved by Iran, according to state-run Fars News. Iran also said Sunday that “one-sided deals” with the United States were over. The United States needed to keep its word, or it would pay the price, Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said. His remarks on social media were posted alongside Article 5 of the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding, which deals with the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The international trade route, a key site in the Iran-U.S. conflict, was impassable as of Monday, according to Iran. The interim peace agreement, signed last month, sought to pave the way to reopening the Strait and ending the war after 60 days of negotiations.

The United States and Iran also traded strikes on Sunday and Monday. The U.S. military hit dozens of Iranian sites in strikes, U.S. Central Command said Sunday. Targets included military air-defense systems, coastal radar sites, missile and drone capabilities, and small boats. Iran did not control the maritime passage for global trade, U.S. Central Command emphasized. The strikes also included the first U.S. use of sea drones in combat operations, which damaged an Iranian submarine and ship maintenance facility, according to U.S. Central Command.

Iran retaliated by targeting U.S. bases in Kuwait, Jordan, Oman, and Bahrain, its military said Monday. Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority on Monday claimed that no passage was possible through the Strait.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged Iran and the United States to resume negotiations. He said a return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences.

Dig deeper: Read Daniel James Devine’s report on the United States strikes against Iran on Saturday.