US military claims Strait of Hormuz remains open amid ongoing blockade

The comments from a US CENTCOM spokesperson come amid heightened tensions over shipping through the vital waterway.Published On 16 Sep 202616 Sep 2026Despite an ongoing blockade on Iranian maritime trade and attacks by Iran’s military on commercial ships, the United States military has said US forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping, including the facilitation of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil through the strategic waterway.On Wednesday, US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command (CENTCOM), said traffic through the strait “continues to flow” while rejecting the suggestion that Iran controls the waterway.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3China does not need to replace the US in the Gulflist 2 of 3Attacks on Saudi oil expose Iraqi PM’s struggle to control armed factionslist 3 of 3Iran war has cost the US $38bn: How will it impact US economy, politics?end of listThe US and Iran have continued to make competing claims about who has greater control of the critical Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.“Since early May, we have assisted commercial vessels moving more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of H...