International shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz are now open and clear of mines following months of painstaking, high-risk operations by US forces, the commander of US Central Command said Thursday.
In a video update, Adm. Brad Cooper confirmed earlier remarks from President Trump that the strategically vital waterway has been fully de-mined and is once again functioning for global maritime traffic, calling the development a “major milestone” in the six-month war in Iran.
“We have successfully cleared sea mines in the strait’s international shipping lanes that were laid months ago by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Cooper said during the operational briefing.
The CENTCOM chief said the internationally recognized transit corridors running through the Strait of Hormuz are now free of Iranian mines, crediting what he described as the extraordinary work of the US military.
Cooper said the operation unfolded over several months and involved Navy divers, Navy SEALs and air support from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps, all working “meticulously and quietly” to remove Iranian mines from the long-established shipping lanes under extremely dangerous conditions.
“The circumstances were challenging and dangerous, to say the least, but we got the job done,” he said. “Bottom line: today, international shipping lanes are open, and momentum is building.”
US forces have also assisted nearly 1,500 commercial ships moving safely through the strait by providing coordinated security, Cooper said, enabling close to 750 million barrels of crude oil to pass through the key energy corridor.
At the same time, Iran has exported “zero oil from its shores” since mid-July, when the United States reinstated its naval blockade of Iranian ports, according to the CENTCOM update.
“No ships have entered or left an Iranian port without our permission,” Cooper asserted, “and we have only allowed ships to pass through on humanitarian grounds.”
Since resuming the US naval blockade, American forces have turned around 75 vessels “attempting to run the blockade” — and disabled three ships that “did not comply when directed.”
Cooper lauded the “brave men and women” working to secure the strait for “their extraordinary service.”
His announcement comes just over a week after Trump proclaimed in a social media post that “all water mines have been removed or detonated” in the Strait of Hormuz.
“The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Aug. 18. The Hormuz Strait is open and operating.”
