Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Altaf Qadri,File)<\/small><\/p>\n
2026-04-13T03:55:11Z<\/p>\n
CAIRO (AP) \u2014 The U.S. military announced it will begin a blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas on Monday, tempering President Donald Trump<\/a><\/span> \u2018s earlier vow to entirely block the strategic Strait of Hormuz<\/a><\/span> as early reports indicated that ships had stopped crossing the waterway.<\/p>\n The move came after marathon U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks<\/a><\/span> in Pakistan ended without an agreement, and it set the stage for a showdown. Iranian leaders vowed to counter the blockade.<\/p>\n U.S. Central Command announced the blockade would begin on Monday at 10 a.m. EDT, or 5:30 p.m. in Iran, and would be \u201cenforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman.\u201d CENTCOM said it would still allow ships traveling between non-Iranian ports to transit the strait, a step down from the president\u2019s earlier threat to blockade the entire strait.<\/p>\n The announcement of the blockade halted the limited ship traffic that resumed in the strait since the ceasefire, said an early report from Lloyd\u2019s List intelligence. Marine trackers say over 40 commercial ships have crossed since the start of the ceasefire, down from roughly 100 to 135 vessel passages per day before the war. <\/p>\n Later Sunday, Trump extended his feud<\/a><\/span> over the war with Pope Leo XIV, lashing out in a Truth Social post that called the Catholic leader \u201cterrible on foreign policy.\u201d The extraordinary broadside came after Leo denounced the war and demanded that political leaders stop and negotiate peace.<\/p>\n The blockage is likely intended to add pressure on Iran, which has exported<\/a><\/span> millions of barrels of oil since the war began, much of it likely carried by so-called \u201cdark\u201d transits that evade Western government sanctions and oversight.<\/p>\n Trump also hopes to undercut Iran\u2019s control over the Strait of Hormuz after demanding that it reopen the waterway where 20% of global oil transited before fighting began. A U.S. blockade could further rattle global energy markets<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n Oil prices rose in early market trading after the blockade announcement. The price of U.S. crude rose 8% to $104.24 a barrel, and Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 7% to $102.29. Brent crude cost roughly $70 per barrel before the war in late February.<\/p>\nThe blockade could have far-reaching effects<\/h2>\n