US military claims Strait of Hormuz remains open amid ongoing blockade

Despite 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.

The 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 Hormuz to the global energy market,” Hawkins told Al Jazeera English’s Tom McRae.

The CENTCOM spokesperson said US forces were carrying out two simultaneous missions: facilitating commercial traffic while enforcing what he described as a highly effective blockade.

“We have redirected more than 100 ships that were trying to violate the blockade,” Hawkins said.

Hawkins added that US forces had completed clearing mines from internationally recognised primary shipping lanes in the strait several weeks ago.

“We remain vigilant. We remain present and watchful to ensure those lanes stay clear,” he said.

“The strait is open. Those lanes are open. And that is why commercial vessels continue to flow through them.”

CENTCOM’s comments come amid continued tensions over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global energy supplies.

Hawkins also defended US military operations in the region after being asked about civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure.

The city of Kuhestak, located in southern Iran’s Sirik County in Hormozgan province, close to the Strait of Hormuz, was the target of multiple attacks by the US military earlier this month, with local sources and authorities saying a wedding ceremony was struck with several people killed and dozens wounded.

Hawkins said the US military “strictly adheres to the laws of armed conflict” and that its targets had been military sites, including facilities belonging to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“We have never targeted civilians during our operations,” he said.

On damage to US military facilities caused by Iranian attacks, Hawkins said it had not affected the US military’s operational effectiveness, claiming that American forces had significantly degraded Iran’s missile capabilities and “essentially eliminated Iran’s navy”.