Convoy of oil tankers passes through Strait of Hormuz, vessel tracking data shows after Iran declared waterway 'completely open' and Trump mocked Nato

Published: 07:43, 18 April 2026 | Updated: 07:58, 18 April 2026 A convoy of oil tankers has passed through the Strait of Hormuz, vessel tracking data shows, after Iran declared the waterway 'completely open'.  Tracking site MarineTraffic shows several ships appearing to be moving through the waterway, including vehicles designed to carry oil, liquefied petroleum gas and chemicals.  Tehran threatened on Saturday to close the Strait once more unless the US lifted its blockade of Iranian ports, which Trump said would remain in place until the 'transaction with Iran is 100 per cent complete'.   Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called Trump's comments about the US winning its war with Iran 'false', adding that if the US continued its blockade, the Strait of Hormuz 'will not remain open'.  The passage of the tankers comes after US President Trump mocked Nato and labelled a planned British-led military taskforce to patrol the Strait of Hormuz 'useless' yesterday.  In a dramatic announcement on Friday, Iran's foreign minister said 'the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open'. This immediately caused oil to become 10 per cent cheaper – its lowest price in over a month – and stock markets to surge. The shipping route, through which a fifth of the world's oil flows, has been closed for weeks – worsening the cost-of-living crisis. Tehran said its decision to 'open' the Strait was linked to a ceasefire announced in Lebanon, where Israel had been bombing Iran's proxy terror group Hezbollah. Tracking site MarineTraffic shows several ships appearing to be moving through the waterway Mr Trump claimed Iran 'has agreed to never close the Strait of Hormuz again', but said the US would continue its own naval blockade 'until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100 per cent complete.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.