\u201cSafe passage through the Strait of Hormuz cannot be guaranteed under ambiguous arrangements, parallel routes or decision-making that does not take Iran\u2019s role as a coastal state into account,\u201d Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on X.<\/p>\n
\t Bloomberg News said Oman, which lies on the opposite side of the strait from Iran, had told allies ships going through Hormuz may have to pay. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report.<\/p>\n The foreign minister of fellow Gulf state the United Arab Emirates held his first announced phone call with his Iranian counterpart since the start of the conflict, UAE state news agency WAM said, underlining efforts of Gulf countries to overcome tensions with Tehran.<\/p>\n It said Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed underlined the need to ensure freedom of navigation through the strait, where shipping had picked up pace before a new slowdown after the ship attack.<\/p>\n \t Iranian state TV said three foreign tankers attempting what it called an \u201cunauthorized passage\u201d of the strait were turned back after a warning from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. It gave no further details.<\/p>\n Asked about the matter, a US official said: \u201cWe are aware of these reports and looking into them. President Trump has been clear that Iran cannot subvert the free flow of traffic in the strait.\u201d<\/p>\n US Secretary of State Marco Rubio \u2014 wrapping up a tour of the Gulf to reassure nervous regional allies about the interim pact \u2014 had told reporters on Thursday that if Iran threatened or blocked ships in the strait, \u201cwe\u2019re going to have a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n In a joint statement, Rubio and the Gulf Cooperation Council called for \u201cfree, unconditional, and unrestricted navigation\u201d in the strait without tolls or \u201cattempts to assert control.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Iran\u2019s foreign ministry responded on Friday by saying the US military presence in the Gulf was the source of regional insecurity and division, and that the waterway should be governed by Iran and Oman in line with the terms of the interim deal.<\/p>\n \u201cWe warn against the continuation of hostile and interventionist policies in the region,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n Oil prices dropped by about 3 percent on Friday, on course for steep weekly losses despite the conflicting interpretations of last week\u2019s interim deal between Iran and the US and renewed questions over the strait, where a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies typically pass.<\/p>\n Saudi Aramco resumed crude loadings on Friday at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf, the world\u2019s biggest oil port, after a nearly four-month halt, shipping data showed.<\/p>\n Fertilizer shipments through the strait have also picked up, helping to assuage concerns about a spike in global food prices because of the waterway\u2019s prolonged closure.<\/p>\n South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said three South Korean ships would leave the strait over the weekend after the Oceans Ministry reported eight more South Korean vessels had exited. He added that this would leave five South Korean cargo ships trapped in the key waterway since the war\u2019s start.<\/p>\n Tehran took effective control of the waterway after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28. Iranian forces also fired at Israel and Gulf states that host US bases, and the Iran-aligned Hezbollah terror group fired on Israel from Lebanon, reigniting conflict there.<\/p>\n \t Fighting in Lebanon has persisted to some degree despite the US-Iran ceasefire and several US-brokered truces meant to stem the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani said Thursday that if Israel did not withdraw voluntarily from south Lebanon, it would eventually be forced to leave in defeat.<\/p>\n On Friday, Defense Minister Israel Katz responded on X, writing in Persian that any Iranian attack on Israel would be Tehran\u2019s \u201cbiggest mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n The US and Iran last week reached a memorandum of understanding that kicked off 60 days of negotiations to end hostilities across the region.<\/p>\n Israel is not a party to the MOU or the negotiations, and Israeli officials have criticized the agreement, which requires from the US \u201cand its allies\u201d a halt to fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon, but contains no concrete concessions from Iran on its nuclear or ballistic missile programs, or its support for regional proxies.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n \u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n \t\t\t
\t\t\t
\t\t\tAlready a member? Sign in to stop seeing this<\/a><\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t That\u2019s why we started the Times of Israel – to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.<\/p>\n So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven\u2019t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.<\/p>\n For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.<\/p>\n Thank you, \t\t\t
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AFP__20260619__B7NC6D3__v1__HighRes__UaeIranUsIsraelWarCeasefireHormuzTransport-640x400.jpg\"){kind=spacer}
<\/a>
\n\t\tCargo ships are pictured off the coast of the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on June 19, 2026 (AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AFP__20260624__B84R2CX__v1__HighRes__UaeUsIranIsraelWarDiplomacy-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tUS Secretary of State Marco Rubio (2nd R) walks alongside UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (R) before boarding a US Air Force aircraft at Al-Bateen Executive Airport, en route to Kuwait, in Abu Dhabi on June 24, 2026. (Eric Lee \/ POOL \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26176428467857-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tUS Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with members of the media before departing for Bahrain International Airport after his visit to the Middle East, in Manama, Bahrain on June 25, 2026. (Eric Lee\/Pool Photo via AP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26177343354984-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tA Hezbollah supporter stands next of a banner that shows portraits of Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, left, and Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem, as she commemorates Ashura in Dahiyeh, Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs, Lebanon, on June 26, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hussein Malla)<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tWe can’t do this work alone.\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Untitled-design-4-200x200.jpg\" "\\"\\"\/")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tYes, I’ll join\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tYes, I’ll join\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tYou’re a dedicated reader\t\t\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/334x334-200x200.png\" "\\"\\"\/")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tJoin Our Community\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n