President Donald Trump issued new threats against Iran on Wednesday, saying the United States will resume bombing if Tehran does not agree to U.S. demands.
The warning came a day after Trump said the U.S. would suspend a mission to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. The U.S. claimed two tankers were able to traverse the strait, but Iran countered that the vessels were stuck in an unnavigable section.
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"Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran. If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
On Tuesday, before Trump’s remarks, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declared that the Strait of Hormuz was no longer under Iranian control. The strait is a critical shipping lane that carried about 20% of the world’s oil supply before the war.
While U.S. officials have called the attacks on Iran a success, Iran’s ability to block tanker traffic through the strait has frustrated Washington and fueled a sharp rise in global energy prices.
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Hegseth said “hundreds” of ships from around the world were lined up to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. maintains that a ceasefire implemented April 8 remains in place. The agreement was set to expire April 21, but Trump extended it to allow more time for negotiations.
There is hope the ceasefire becomes permanent. Axios is reporting that the U.S. and Iran are working on a peace agreement that would bring an end to the war.
