LAST UPDATE | 22 Apr

IRAN’S PARLIAMENT SPEAKER has said the country will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz as long as the US naval blockade remains in place, calling it a breach of the ceasefire.

“A complete ceasefire only has meaning if it is not violated through a naval blockade and the hostage-taking of the world’s economy,” Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X.

“Reopening the Strait of Hormuz is impossible with such a flagrant breach of the ceasefire.”

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said today that their naval forces stopped two container ships attempting to cross the strait, and directed them to the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic.

“The two offending ships… were seized by the IRGC’s naval forces and directed to the Iranian coast,” the Guards said in a statement.

There have also been reports that a third ship was attacked by Iranian forces in the Strait this morning.

Tehran has said vessels must seek permission to leave or enter the Gulf through Hormuz, through a route that in peacetime accounts for 20% of the world’s oil and gas exports along with other vital commodities.

Meanwhile, Iran has yet to respond to Donald Trump’s announcement of an extension of the ceasefire. In his announcement yesterday, the US president said the blockade of Iran’s ports would continue despite the ceasefire.

Earlier today, Trump said a second round of talks between Washington and Tehran could take place within the next three days. 

“It’s possible!” Trump reportedly told the New York Post by text message, when asked about sources in Pakistan – which mediated the first round of talks – saying that a second round was “expected in Islamabad within the next 36 to 72 hours.”

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He insisted in a Truth Social  post that keeping a US blockade of the strait is vital for forging a deal with Iran.

“People approached me four days ago, saying, ‘Sir, Iran wants to open up the Strait, immediately.’ But if we do that, there can never be a Deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included!,” he said. 

Both sides have accused the other of ceasefire breaches.

In an earlier social media post, Trump indicated that he had no desire to extend the ceasefire and had warned of a resumption of bombing when it expired.

“I have… directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their (Iran’s) proposal is submitted,” he wrote.