Strait of Hormuz Closed, Iran Issues Safe Navigation Route

On April 8, 2026, which was supposed to be the first day of the temporary ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran taking effect, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse. Iran issued a statement pointing out that although formal negotiations between the two sides had not yet begun, three of the ten ceasefire clauses previously proposed by Iran had been blatantly violated. This development directly led to the critical waterway connecting the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea—the Strait of Hormuz—being closed again after a brief period of opening.

Iran detailed the three core clauses that were violated. First, the clause concerning achieving a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon. Previously, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had announced that Iran, the United States, and their respective allies had agreed to an immediate ceasefire in all conflict areas, including Lebanon, but this commitment was not fulfilled in practice. Second, the clause prohibiting violations of Iranian airspace. The statement mentioned that the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intercepted and shot down a drone over Lar City in Fars Province that same day, which Iran considered a violation of its airspace. The third clause alleged to have been violated involved the United States' need to accept Iran's uranium enrichment activities. Although U.S. President Trump had publicly stated that the ten clauses proposed by Iran were a "feasible basis for negotiations," with negotiations not yet started, this foundation has been undermined, casting a shadow over the already fragile peace process.

In direct response to the current security risks, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy issued a latest statement via the Iranian Students' News Agency in the early hours of April 9. The statement warned that due to the impact of recent military operations, the main shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz "may contain anti-ship mines," posing a serious threat to passing vessels. Therefore, all ships planning to pass through the strait must coordinate with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy and strictly follow the alternative safe route it has designated to avoid hitting mines. According to the map attached to the statement, this new safe passage requires ships to reroute, entering and exiting the Persian Gulf by passing north and south of Lark Island, located in the northern part of the Strait of Hormuz, respectively.

The latest data on strait traffic confirms the severity of the situation. According to real-time monitoring data from ShipVision, in the nearly 24 hours leading up to the time of reporting, only 8 vessels had transited the Strait of Hormuz. These vessels included 6 dry bulk carriers, 1 container ship, and 1 general cargo ship. Notably, not a single one of them was an oil tanker. The flags of these 8 ships were widely distributed, including Panama, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Liberia, Malta, Tanzania, and Botswana. In terms of direction, except for 1 ship heading west (into the Persian Gulf), the other 7 were heading east (out of the Persian Gulf). This data clearly indicates that crude oil transportation through the Strait of Hormuz, a global oil shipping chokepoint, has come to a standstill due to the current security crisis.

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