Iran says Strait of Hormuz is 'open' but tracking shows few ships moving

Iran says Strait of Hormuz is 'open' but tracking shows few ships moving9 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleKathryn ArmstrongReutersFew ships have been able to pass through the Strait of Hormuz in recent monthsIran's foreign minister has said the Strait of Hormuz has reopened for commercial vessels, but added that ships should use designated safe lanes.Tehran has effectively blocked the key oil shipping channel since the US and Israel attacked the country on 28 February. A ceasefire between the US and Iran is due to expire on 22 April.US President Donald Trump said a naval blockade of Iranian ports would continue until a peace deal was agreed between the two countries but that it was "a great and brilliant day for the world".Maritime groups say they are still verifying whether it is safe for vessels to travel through the strait, and tracking shows minimal ship movement.The announcement by Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, came on Friday - the first full day of a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. "In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep of Iran," he wrote on X. Iranian state TV later quoted a "senior military official" as saying that the passage of these vessels would be through a "designated route" and that the passage of military vessels through the Strait would still be "prohibited."This is likely referring to a map and two routes designated by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and widely reported by Iranian media last week.Some Iranian news outlets have criticised Araghchi's post. Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the IRGC, called it "bad and incomplete", saying such passage would be considered "void...