Would a US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz be legal? An international law expert explains

NewsWorldMiddle EastAnalysisWould a US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz be legal? An international law expert explainsThe freedom of navigation through international straits is one of the core principles of international law, Donald Rothwell writesMonday 13 April 2026 11:22 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2956481","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/iran-trump-blockade-hormuz-legal-b2956481.html","title":"Would a US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz be legal? A law expert explains"},"popoverPlacementOverride":"bottom"}CloseKeir Starmer says UK won’t take part in US blockade of Strait of HormuzOn The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_On_The_Ground_Newsletter","regTitle":"On The Ground","subscriptionGroup":"on_the_ground","subscriptionGroupId":"14806361-6435-4d19-b06e-05326605fb01","pathPrefix":["/news/world/europe","/news/world/middle-east","/news/world/australasia","/news/world/africa","/asia"],"associatedAuthors":["Bel Trew","Sam Kiley"],"title":"On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","mobileTitle":"Get a weekly international news dispatch","lengthenedMobileTitle":"Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/onTheGround1_1.png","newsletterKey":"receiveOnTheGround","regSourceSection":"Middle East","regSourceMethod":"N...