White House Disputes Iran Strait of Hormuz Closure Reports Amid Ceasefire Negotiations

The White House disputed Iranian state media reports claiming the closure of the Strait of Hormuz hours after a ceasefire agreement with the United States. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed reporters on Wednesday, stating that any effort by Iran to halt maritime traffic through the strait would be completely unacceptable.

The ceasefire was announced Tuesday evening, just before a deadline set by President Trump.

U.S. military bombardments and Trump's threats with prompting Iran's agreement to the ceasefire. U.S. conducted 450 strikes on Iranian ballistic missile facilities and 800 strikes on drone launching facilities.

Iran's submarine fleet and 150 navy vessels were destroyed, along with stores of 5,000 naval mines, according to Leavitt. Iran's ability to build and store ballistic missiles has been set back years, Leavitt said. U.S. has severely weakened Iran's military capabilities overall. U.S. operation.

A U.S. negotiating team led by Vice President JD Vance, including Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, will meet Iranian officials in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday. Iran publicly released a 10-point ceasefire proposal as the framework for talks.

U.S. rejected Iran's initial proposal but accepted a modified version as a workable basis for negotiation. U.S. negotiators. President Trump has demanded that Iran reopen the strait to traffic without limitations, including tolls.

U.S. and Iran could jointly charge tolls, though Leavitt described this as an idea floated by the president.

The ceasefire followed U.S. threats to destroy Iran's civilization if no deal was reached by the deadline. Iranian state media reported the strait closure in response to Israeli attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon. U.S. military operations in Iran are completed.