President Donald Trump has suggested renaming the Strait of Hormuz the “Trump Strait” amid renewed hostilities with Iran following a brief period of respite. Like America itself, it would be ‘hotter’ than ever before!” the President said Wednesday. Trump floated the idea a day after the U.S.
Central Command (CENTCOM) launched a new wave of strikes against Iranian military targets. The U.S. military said it struck air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications sites linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday released a statement insisting the U.S. had attacked civilian areas and service infrastructure in the provinces of Khuzestan, Sistan and Baluchestan, Hormozgan, and Kerman.
It said a wedding ceremony in Kuhestak, Sirik County, had been struck, resulting in fatalities and injuries. In a statement to TIME, CENTCOM spokesperson Navy Captain Tim Hawkins said: “We are aware of reports, which originated from Iranian state media. The U.S. military never targets civilians, unlike the IRGC.” The IRGC said it had launched retaliatory strikes on U.S. bases in Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain, alongside an additional U.S. facility in Iraq, overnight Tuesday.
The renewed hostilities and threats come after a roughly month-long pause in active hostilities between the two countries. On Sunday, the U.S. military struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island it said were preparing to fire rockets carrying naval mines into the Strait. Trump’s attempt to rename the Strait underscores how both Iran and the U.S. have continued to vie for control of the vital waterway, through which roughly a fifth of global oil transited before the war.
The President has previously turned to name changes as a show of power and a way to undermine his perceived adversaries, most recently renaming Lake Ontario as “Lake America” during the U.S. trade war with Canada. Meanwhile, although Trump has claimed the U.S. has near total control of the Strait, the tussle over the body of water—which reignited after both countries adopted different interpretations of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)—rages on. With no clear path to a negotiated truce, Washington has doubled down on its “economic D-Day” threats against Tehran, increasing the pressure by tightening sanctions in addition to military action.
The latest round of strikes between the U.S. and Iran has further disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Kpler, a commodities data and analytics firm, shared data with TIME that shows that only six ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday—a drop from 19 vessels on Friday last week. Before the Iran war began on Feb. 28, 138 vessels typically passed through the vital trade waterway during a 24-hour period.
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