CENTCOM warns ships it will 'force compliance' with Hormuz blockade

Trump's decision to blockade the strait represented something of a reversal from his prior public demands that Iran reopen the critical waterway.

Published: April 15, 2026 3:04pm

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) issued an audio warning to ships that it would "force compliance" with the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz amid the Iran war.

"If you do not comply with this blockade, we will use force. The whole of the United States Navy is ready to force compliance," the audio warning stated, according to Fox News.

Trump imposed the blockade over the weekend in the wake of failed negotiations in Islamabad, Pakistan, to end the Iran war. Reportedly driving the deadlock was the Iranian unwillingness to commit to non-nuclear proliferation, one of the core U.S. war aims.

The conflict began in late February, when the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on the Islamic Republic, which took out Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Trump's decision to blockade the strait represented something of a reversal from his prior public demands that Iran reopen the critical waterway.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.

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