Iran Declares Strait Of Hormuz Closed Amid Alleged Israeli Ceasefire Violations

By Francis Kapper

Iran announced Saturday it will close the Strait of Hormuz, accusing Israel of launching strikes in Lebanon in violation of a ceasefire which had just taken effect.

The Israeli strikes took place hours after the ceasefire with the Hezbollah terror group took effect Friday at 4:00 p.m. local time, Reuters reported, citing Lebanese Civil Defense. The strikes preceded an announcement by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps that ships should not attempt to cross the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media outlet Seraph News reported.

Iran claimed the Israeli strikes violated the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran, which called for an immediate halt to hostilities between Iran, Lebanon, the United States, and U.S. allies. (RELATED: Top Israeli Official Openly Calls For Genocide As US Seeks Peace: ‘All Of Lebanon Must Burn’)

Israel, meanwhile, claimed Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight, Reuters reported, citing an unnamed Israeli military official.

“Israel wants to attack Hezbollah, and they also are happy to screw up the ceasefire,” Defense Priorities Policy Director Benjamin Friedman told the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF). “They pushed us into the war, and they want us to continue it, even if it tanks the global economy.”

The strikes killed 16 people and injured 12 others, the Lebanese Civil Defense wrote in a Saturday post to X.

الدفاع المدني اللبناني يُجلي 47 مواطناً وينقل 16 شهيداً و12 جريحاً جراء الاعتداءات على منطقة النبطيةhttps://t.co/L1kUd4RRib pic.twitter.com/OkoeKl8k1q

— الدفاع المدني اللبناني (@CivilDefenseLB) June 20, 2026

Lebanon has sustained over 4,000 deaths since March 2, Reuters reported, citing Lebanon’s Health Ministry. In addition, over 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced, according to The Associated Press. Israel has lost 32 soldiers and four civilians since the conflict began, Reuters reported, citing Israeli authorities.

The White House, the State Department, the Department of War, U.S. Central Command, the Embassy of Israel, the Israeli Ministry of Defense, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Embassy of Lebanon, Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, and the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s requests for comment.

Citing the “crimes” of the “Zionist regime” and the perceived violation of America’s commitment to establish a ceasefire, Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to all vessels, according to the Seraph News press release.

“We should threaten to cut off some aid and military support for Israel to get [it] to abide by the ceasefire, and carry out our threat if they don’t,” Friedman told the DCNF.

An Israeli army Merkava tank takes position along the northern border with Lebanon in the Upper Galilee on June 18, 2026. Israeli strikes in south Lebanon killed three people on June 18, according to Lebanese state media, hours after the United States and Iran signed an agreement to end the Middle East war. Israel’s military, meanwhile, announced the death of one of its soldiers the night before in an incident in south Lebanon that also left seven others wounded. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images)

The perceived ceasefire violation comes at a critical moment during the U.S.-Iran negotiations to end the conflict. Vice President JD Vance signaled he may soon travel to Switzerland to continue negotiations.

“I expect that I will leave [for Switzerland] sometime in the next couple of days,” Vance said during a Saturday appearance on Fox & Friends. “But, you know, it’s always a delicate coordination dance and the diplomatic protocols.”

“Switzerland continues to provide a discreet and reliable setting to facilitate talks at Bürgenstock on the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding between the US [sic] and Iran,” a Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson told the DCNF. “Diplomats from various countries currently present are continuing their efforts to maintain the dialogue.”

The memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran calls for the “territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon” be respected.

The Israeli strikes came only one day after Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the genocide of Lebanese women in a Friday X post.

על כל דמעה של אמא ישראלית, אלף אמהות לבנוניות צריכות לבכות. לבנון כולה צריכה לבעור!

עם כל הכבוד לאמריקאים, ישראל חייבת להבהיר לעולם כולו שדם בנינו וביטחון אזרחנו איננו הפקר. לבנון כולה צריכה לבעור. חובתנו העליונה היא להגן על אזרחי ישראל ועל חיילי צה״ל, והמחויבות הזו קודמת לכל…

— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) June 19, 2026

“For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep,” Ben-Gvir posted. “All of Lebanon must burn! With all due respect to the Americans, Israel must make it clear to the entire world that the blood of our sons and the security of our citizens are not forfeit. All of Lebanon must burn.”

While it is against the rules on X to call for genocide, X determined “that it may be in the public’s interest” for the post to remain.

“There are elements of the Israeli government who are fanatics like Ben-Gvir,” Friedman told the DCNF. “He and others prefer war and international pariah status to any concessions, even if it means losing U.S. support. But I don’t think that’s the dominant Israeli position. If the Israeli government falls over this issue, that should be OK with us.”

President Donald Trump and Vance warned the Israeli government that it should abide by the U.S. demands for the cessation of all hostilities in the region.

“You can do a little softer touch, Bibi,” Trump said Wednesday at the G7 summit. “I’m saying, when two drones are shot into the desert and dropped harmlessly, you don’t have to knock down buildings in Beirut.”

“Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time, and he happens to be the head of state of the world’s superpower,” Vance said Thursday during a White House press briefing. “If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.”

Trump has previously announced ceasefires between Israel and Lebanon that went nowhere.

“I just had excellent conversations with the Highly Respected President Joseph Aoun, of Lebanon, and Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, of Israel. These two Leaders have agreed that in order to achieve PEACE between their Countries,” Trump said in an April 16 Truth Social post.

The April 16 ceasefire came about only eight days after Operation Eternal Darkness, during which the Israel Defense Forces, on April 8, killed 361 people and injured over 1,000 people in a single day, the BBC reported, citing Lebanese authorities.

“They [Israel] could behave better,” Trump said at the G7 summit. “But they could do a much better job with Hezbollah. On that, I don’t think they’re doing well, and I feel very bad for Lebanon.”