Iran said Saturday that the\u00a0Strait of Hormuz<\/a> is closed, citing ceasefire violations after Israel continued deadly strikes in southern Lebanon overnight.<\/p>\n The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy warned ships not to approach the waterway, which Iran had committed to reopening under the interim\u00a0peace deal signed this week<\/a>. It said in a statement that vessels\u2019 safety would be at risk if they did so.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s top joint military command said the \u2060closure was the \u201cfirst step\u201d in response to what were described as \u200cbreaches of \u2060commitments by the U.S. and Israel, according to Iran\u2019s semiofficial Mehr news agency.<\/p>\n In a\u00a0statement on X\u00a0<\/a>that did not acknowledge the apparent closure, U.S. Central Command said that 55 merchant ships transited the strait on Saturday, \u201cmoving large amounts of cargo and more than 17 million barrels of oil to global markets.\u201d<\/p>\n U.S. forces \u201cremain present and vigilant to ensure all aspects of the agreement with Iran are adhered to, obeyed, and in full force and effect,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n Iran and the U.S. have both shown frustration with Israel for continuing to strike Lebanon despite the deal signed this week, which specified that fighting must end on all fronts, including Lebanon. Though Israel was not a direct party to that deal, Iran has warned that it would consider Israeli strikes a violation of the terms.<\/p>\n Early Saturday, Israeli strikes killed at least 16 people, including two children, according to Lebanese civil defense and media, one day after the U.S. said Israel and Hezbollah had\u00a0implemented a fresh ceasefire<\/a>\u00a0at President Donald Trump\u2019s request.<\/p>\n Israel hit a series of towns across Lebanon\u2019s south early Saturday, Lebanese news agency NNA reported. An airstrike on the town of Arabsalim reportedly killed three people, the agency reported, and a drone strike on the town of Deir al-Zahrani reportedly killed one person. At least seven people remain trapped under the rubble, it said. Lebanon\u2019s army said a soldier was killed between Kfar Rumman and Nabatieh in southern Lebanon.<\/p>\n A previous wave of strikes on Friday killed 83 people, Lebanon\u2019s Ministry of Health said.<\/p>\n A statement from the Israel Defense Forces said Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group, had breached the ceasefire and \u201claunched more than 50 projectiles toward IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon\u201d overnight, and that Israel had attacked what it described as Hezbollah targets in response. \u201cThe IDF remains committed to the ceasefire agreement,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n Hezbollah said it had \u201cadhered to the ceasefire since Friday evening,\u201d accusing Israel of making false claims to justify its attacks in an effort to \u201csabotage the agreement\u201d between Iran and the U.S.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screenshot-2026-06-20-at-2.07.03-PM.png\")
<\/p>\n