Washington and Tehran again presented sharply contrasting narratives over the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring skepticism over the reopening of the waterway.
Hours after US President Donald Trump said his forces had “total control” over Hormuz, Iranian officials said his remarks “do not change the reality” of its closure.
The Wall Street Journal said tracking data showed just 14 ships traversed the channel on Tuesday, barely a tenth of pre-war levels, though a leading Bloomberg columnist suggested that analysts were likely underestimating the volume of oil crossing Hormuz: He noted that visible oil spills pointed to a battle between Iran trying to keep the strait closed while others push to keep it open, “perhaps more successfully than we think.”