Iran has redefined the Strait of Hormuz as a “vast operational area” rather than the traditional narrow corridor surrounding the waterway, according to Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy spokesperson Mohammad Akbarzadeh, in a doctrinal shift that expands the maritime zone Iran claims to control and complicates the calculus for any future reopening.
The IRGC announcement represents a hardening of Iran’s posture even as a conditional ceasefire technically remains in place. The U.K. House of Commons Library’s latest analysis, released Friday, states bluntly that “almost no shipping has used the strait and it remains effectively closed.” Pre-conflict, around 3,000 vessels used the strait monthly. Current traffic stands at roughly 5% of that baseline according to Kpler tanker tracking data.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson on Saturday rejected new U.S. accusations regarding the strait, telling reporters that international criticism of Iran’s behavior in the waterway was unfounded. The same day, U.S. Naval Central Command announced that the 5th Fleet is increasing rotations of ships and aircraft patrolling in and around the strait following recent Iranian merchant vessel seizures, in addition to bolstering coordination with the International Maritime Security Construct and European Maritime Awareness mission.
President Trump warned in a public statement that “if Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing so, we want them removed, immediately. If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before.” Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Larijani responded that “the Strait of Hormuz will either be a strait of peace and prosperity for all or will be a strait of defeat and suffering for warmongers.”
The IRGC’s “vast operational area” framing is significant because it implicitly extends Iran’s claimed jurisdictional reach beyond the strait’s internationally recognized geography. The strait at its narrowest is 21 miles wide, forming a seaway passage between Iran and Oman. By referring to a broader operational area, Iran is signaling it considers the surrounding Persian Gulf and approaches to be part of its theater of operations — a position that conflicts with established maritime law on freedom of navigation in international waterways.
Around 1,550 commercial vessels remain stranded with approximately 22,500 mariners trapped in and around the strait, according to Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine’s May 6 briefing. Trump announced Project Freedom, a U.S. Navy escort mission to help stranded vessels exit, on May 4. He paused the operation May 6 citing “great progress” toward a possible agreement. The pause continues.
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