US Military Insists Strait of Hormuz Remains Open Despite Blockade and Regional Tensions

Vessels continue to transit the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Iran's southern port city of Bandar Abbas. Despite an ongoing blockade on Iranian maritime trade and attacks by Iran’s military on commercial ships, the United States military has maintained that US forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping, facilitating the movement of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil through the strategic waterway.

On Wednesday, US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command (CENTCOM), stated that traffic through the strait continues to flow while dismissing the notion that Iran controls the waterway. The US and Iran remain locked in competing claims regarding dominance over the critical Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.

"Since early May, we have assisted commercial vessels moving more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz to the global energy market," Hawkins informed Al Jazeera English’s Tom McRae. According to the CENTCOM spokesperson, US forces are currently executing two concurrent missions: safeguarding commercial traffic while enforcing a robust blockade.

"We have redirected more than 100 ships that were trying to violate the blockade," Hawkins reported, adding that US personnel successfully cleared mines from internationally recognized primary shipping lanes in the strait several weeks ago. "We remain vigilant. We remain present and watchful to ensure those lanes stay clear. The strait is open. Those lanes are open. And that is why commercial vessels continue to flow through them."

These statements from CENTCOM arrive amid persistent friction over maritime navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital corridor for international energy supplies. Addressing inquiries regarding civilian casualties and infrastructure damage, Hawkins defended ongoing US military operations in the area.

Earlier this month, the city of Kuhestak—situated in southern Iran’s Sirik County in Hormozgan province near the Strait of Hormuz—experienced multiple US military strikes. Local sources and authorities reported that a wedding ceremony was hit, resulting in multiple fatalities and numerous injuries.

In response, Hawkins asserted that the US military strictly adheres to the laws of armed conflict and targeted exclusively military installations, including sites tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. "We have never targeted civilians during our operations," he maintained.

Addressing the impact of retaliatory Iranian strikes on US assets, Hawkins stated that American operational capabilities remain unaffected, asserting that US forces have heavily degraded Iran’s missile infrastructure and essentially eliminated Iran’s navy.