Iranian Parliament Speaker Says Again That Iran Intends To Control Strait Of Hormuz
Iran parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, has reiterated Tehran's intention to control the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on X to mark Persian Gulf National Day, Qalibaf said that "by exercising control over the Strait of Hormuz, [Iran] will ensure that it and its neighbors enjoy the precious blessing of a future free from the presence and interference of America.
Persian Gulf National Day marks the anniversary of a historic military victory in 1622, when forces of the Safavid Empire expelled the Portuguese from the Strait of Hormuz.
"After 115 years of occupation, we expelled the European colonizers from the Persian Gulf, and we celebrate Persian Gulf Day in honor of this victory," Qalibaf said.
Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global oil and gas supplies, to most international shipping, while the US Navy is stopping Iranian ships entering or exiting Iranian ports.
There have been reports that the US is considering a new proposal from Iran to end the war in which Tehran would open the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.
Situation In Hormuz Still 'Critical' Says Shipping Security Monitor
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)shipping security monitor has issued a Joint Maritime Information Center advisory saying conditions for transiting the Strait of Hormuz remain “critical” amid ongoing regional military operations, with increased naval presence, congestion, and vessels likely to be hailed over VHF radio security forces in the region.
The United States has established an enhanced security area south of the main shipping lanes, it said, advising ships to consider routing via Omani waters and coordinate with authorities.
Transit near the traffic separation scheme is “extremely hazardous” due to reported mines, and operators should review risks and routing carefully, according to the May 4 notice.
Earlier, the UKMTO said that an oil tanker had been targeted by "projectiles of unknown origin" 78 nautical miles north of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates.
The alert said that all crew members on board were safe and there had been no environmental contamination.
The UAE later condemned "in the strongest terms" what it said was the targeting of a national tanker affiliated with its state oil company while passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
US Denies Ship Hit By Iranian Missiles
Iranian media said a US Navy frigate was targeted by two missiles near Jask at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz after allegedly ignoring Iranian warnings, forcing it to turn back.
The claim, reported by the semiofficial Fars agency without citing a source, was subsequently denied by US Central Command
Amid the conflicting accounts, Iran’s navy said it had blocked “enemy” vessels from entering the strait with a “swift and decisive warning,” while US President Donald Trump has said Washington would act to free ships stranded in the vital waterway, a key route for global energy supplies.
Iran Outlines New 'Control Area' In Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has warned that maritime activity in the Strait of Hormuz must comply with its naval protocols or face enforcement action.
The warning follows recent US statements -- including President Donald Trump’s plan to deploy naval forces to escort or “guide” commercial ships through the strait -- and advisories from the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a shipping security monitor, about security incidents and new restrictions affecting shipping in the area.
Responding to what it called “baseless” claims, the IRGC said there has been no change in how the strait is managed, the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.
It added that civilian and commercial vessels following designated transit routes in coordination with its navy would remain safe, while any noncompliant movements would face “serious risks,” including being stopped by force.
In a separate statement, the IRGC outlined what it described as a new area of the strait under Iranian control, defined by two boundary lines: from Kuh-e Mobarak, on Iran’s southeastern coast near the Gulf of Oman, to waters south of Fujairah on the United Arab Emirates’ eastern coast, and from the western tip of Qeshm Island to Umm Al Quwain on the UAE’s northern Gulf coast.
Tehran Calls On US To Move Away From 'Excessive Demands'
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei has called on the United States to back away from its "excessive demands" to allow peace negotiations between the two countries to move forward.
"At this stage, our priority is to end the war," Baqaei told a briefing on May 4 that was broadcast by state television.
"The other side must commit to a reasonable approach and abandon its excessive demands regarding Iran."
He gave no details on which demands Tehran feels are excessive.
A day earlier, Iran said it had received a response from Washington to its latest peace proposal, which Iran had earlier handed to Pakistan, which has been mediating talks between the two warring countries.
US President Donald Trump said he would probably reject the Iranian proposal because "they have not paid a big enough price."
He did not elaborate.
We are now closing the live blog for the day. We'll be back at 7:30 a.m. Central European time to cover the latest events across the Middle East.
Trump Says US To 'Guide' Stranded Neutral Ships Out Of Hormuz Starting May 4
President Donald Trump said US forces will on May 4 begin guiding stranded “neutral” ships out of restricted waters near the Strait of Hormuz, even as he asserted that Washington was having “positive discussions” with Iran about ending war in the Middle East.
Calling the effort a “humanitarian” gesture, Trump on May 3 said the US “for the good of Iran, the Middle East, and the United States,’ has told neutral countries that “we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business.”
In the Truth Social posting, Trump warned that action would be taken should Iran attempt to interfere with the US mission, potentially reigniting hostilities with Tehran that currently are paused through a cease-fire.
"If, in any way, this Humanitarian process is interfered with, that interference will, unfortunately, have to be dealt with forcefully," Trump said.
A senior Iranian official warned that Tehran would consider any attempt by the US to operate in the strait a breach of the cease-fire.
"Any American interference in the new maritime regime of the Strait of Hormuz will be considered a violation of the cease-fire," Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament's national security commission, posted on X.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) released a statement saying that the mission "will include guided-missile destroyers, over 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms, and 15,000 service members."
The statement did not specify how the assets would be utilized. A reporter for Axios, citing two US officials, said Navy ships would not escort commercial vessels but rather would be "in the vicinity" should they be needed to prevent attacks.
The US president said the action was being taken at the request of countries whose ships are stuck in the waterway as Iran has prevented most traffic through the strait in retaliation for the US-Israeli air strikes that started on February 28. The US is also conducting a blockade to prevent ships from leaving or entering Iranian ports.
“Countries from all over the World, almost all of which are not involved in the Middle Eastern dispute going on so visibly, and violently, for all to see, have asked the United States if we could help free up their Ships, which are locked up in the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
Trump added that he has told his representatives to inform the countries "that we will use best efforts to get their ships and crews safely out of the blocked Strait of Hormuz."
"The Ship movement is merely meant to free up people, companies, and Countries that have done absolutely nothing wrong — They are victims of circumstance.”
"Many of these Ships are running low on food, and everything else necessary for largescale crews to stay on board in a healthy and sanitary manner,” Trump added.
Peace talks between the United States and Iran – mediated by Pakistan – have faltered since a first round of discussions in Islamabad on April 11-12.
On May 3, Iranian officials said they were studying Trump’s response to Tehran's latest 14-point peace proposal handed to the US through Pakistan.
Trump on May 2 said he was preparing to review Tehran’s proposal but said he could not imagine it would be acceptable.
Iranian Media: Tehran Received US Response To Latest Peace Proposal
Iran's Foreign Ministry said on May 3 that it had received a response from the United States to its latest peace proposal, which Tehran had earlier handed to Pakistan, a country that has been mediating talks between the two countries.
A day earlier, US President Donald Trump said he would probably reject the Iranian proposal because "they have not paid a big enough price." He also said he viewed the Iranian leadership as divided, making it an obstacle to negotiating an end to the war.
While there was no immediate confirmation from Washington or Islamabad on the US response, Iranian state media quoted Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying there were no talks over Iran's nuclear capabilities at this stage.
The issue has been central in any possible resolution of the conflict, as it remained the main US demand after it began its joint military effort with Israel against Iran. Tehran has refused to agree to give up its nuclear ambitions and has reportedly pushed to leave them outside the current negotiations.
Commercial Ships 'Redirected' By US Forces, As CENTCOM Chief Visits Area Of Operations
Dozens of commercial ships have been "redirected" to comply with the American naval blockade of Iranian ports and vessels, the US military said.
In a May 3 post on X, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its chief, Admiral Brad Cooper, has visited one of US guided-missile destroyers deployed to the area, as the vessel "patrolled regional waters in support of the US blockade operations against Iran."
"As of today, 49 commercial vessels have been redirected to comply with blockade. US forces remain fully committed to total enforcement," CENTCOM added.
Since the beginning of joint US-Israeli military operations against Iran, more than 50,000 US troops, over 200 fighter aircraft, two aircraft carrier strike groups, and long-range bombers have been involved in the campaign.
Last month, after the two sides agreed to a cease-fire, Washington increased economic pressure on Tehran by imposing a naval blockade, limiting its export capacity.
Iranian Academic Tells Of Waiting In Line To Use Internet
A report by a semi-official Iranian news agency sheds an intriguing light on Internet usage in the country.
On day 65 of a nationwide Internet blackout, Alireza Esthamaty, the dean of the medical faculty at Tehran University, told ISNA news agency that “professors are forced to take turns using the Internet, and wait in line to use the facilities.”
Iran’s current Internet blackout began after US and Israeli air strikes on February 28 and, given Iran's population is over 90 million people, it is arguably the largest government-directed communications outage in recorded history.
Internet-monitoring watchdog NetBlocks described it as "unsurpassed in scale and severity in a connected society." It has severely limited the flow of information to and from Iran.
The Iranian authorities also turned off the Internet as a means of suppressing mass nationwide protests in January. While security forces killed thousands of people, opposition activists were unable to get online and organize.
The authorities now appear to be using the current blackout to create a more pliant web only available to those loyal to the clerical establishment.
Rather than a total blackout, authorities have maintained an elaborate whitelisting system of selectively granting connectivity to favored institutions, companies, and individuals while leaving the rest of the population cut off.
Academics are among those benefitting from the new regime, dubbed Internet Pro. But Esthamaty was quoted as saying that even this is a far from satisfactory service.
“Internet access is available in several places at the university, but outside the university, especially at night when many academic activities and preparation for lectures and classes are taking place, Internet access is disrupted," he said.
In addition to this, Esthamaty said access to laptops was restricted, adding that Internet Pro "does not meet academic needs."
Amnesty International has criticized Iranian authorities for imposing what it calls "digital darkness," describing access to the Internet as "a basic human right and indispensable in times of conflict."
At Least One Killed, Others Reportedly Injured By Israeli Forces In Lebanon
At least one person has been killed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Lebanon, in the latest armed incident during a shaky cease-fire there between the IDF and Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
The IDF-Hezbollah conflict threatens to disrupt the cease-fire between Washington and Tehran, with Iran repeatedly insisting that it needs to be resolved within negotiations on ending its conflict with the United States.
Hezbollah is both a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union has only blacklisted its armed wing.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency cited the country’s Health Ministry as saying that "the Israeli enemy's raid on the town of Arab Salim in the Nabatieh district resulted in one martyr and three wounded, including a child.”
An online statement by the IDF said two “armed Hezbollah terrorists” were “eliminated” after “posing an imminent threat.” It added that further “terrorists” were killed in a subsequent strike.
It was not clear if the IDF was referring to the same incident, and there was no immediate independent confirmation about what happened.
Earlier on May 3, the IDF issued a warning to residents of some areas of southern Lebanon to evacuate their homes and move at least a kilometer away due to what it said were ongoing operations against Hezbollah.
The previous day, the Israeli military said it had struck dozens of Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.