{"id":2592477,"date":"2026-04-19T08:28:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T12:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-forces-moving-to-crack-down-hard-after-irgc-closes-the-straight-of-hormuz-yet-again\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T08:30:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T12:30:23","slug":"us-forces-moving-to-crack-down-hard-after-irgc-closes-the-straight-of-hormuz-yet-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-forces-moving-to-crack-down-hard-after-irgc-closes-the-straight-of-hormuz-yet-again\/","title":{"rendered":"US Forces Moving to Crack Down Hard After IRGC Closes the Straight of Hormuz Yet Again"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fus-forces-moving-to-crack-down-hard-after-irgc-closes-the-straight-of-hormuz-yet-again%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2592477&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Escalating tensions surround the Strait of Hormuz after Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guards threatened to block the waterway, prompting the United States to consider a more aggressive naval response targeting Iran-linked ships in international waters. A Wall Street Journal report cites officials saying the U.S. will board Iran-linked oil tankers adn seize vessels as part of pressing Tehran to reopen the strait and concede on its nuclear program. Iranian officials and President Trump initially claimed the strait remained open,per The New York Times,but the IRGC quickly followed with a statement that the strait was closed again after two Indian-flagged ships were attacked while attempting to transit. The United Kingdom\u2019s Maritime Trade Operations reported a tanker being fired upon and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/family-members-of-workers-killed-in-baltimore-bridge-collapse-sue-shipowner-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Family members of workers killed in Baltimore bridge collapse sue shipowner - Washington Examiner\">container ship hit<\/a> by an unknown projectile, with Iran saying its actions were in retaliation to the blockade. Analyses and former officials say Iran may view closing the strait as its main leverage, while U.S. assessments highlight the economic impact of sanctions and the political costs in the United States. Coverage from outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Axios, and Fox News frames the episodes as a mix of diplomatic maneuvering, potential military actions, and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >significant economic repercussions<\/a> for Iran.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">America is planning an aggressive response to Iran&rsquo;s action Saturday to close the Strait of Hormuz, according to a new report.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After Iran&rsquo;s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said it would block any ships from passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the United States is preparing to ramp up its naval crackdown on any ship, anywhere, that is linked to Iran.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">U.S. forces will board Iran-linked oil tankers and seize commercial ships sailing in international waters, according to a report in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/world\/middle-east\/u-s-military-prepares-to-board-iran-linked-ships-in-coming-days-officials-say-4dc0a718?mod=hp_lead_pos1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Wall Street Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;The Trump administration&rsquo;s decision to step up the economic pressure on Tehran is intended to force the regime to re-open the strait and make concessions on its nuclear program, which has been the focus of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran,&rdquo; the outlet reported.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>On Friday, Iranian officials and President Donald Trump said the strait was open, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2026\/04\/18\/world\/iran-us-war-trump-hormuz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Less than a day later, the IRGC statement saying the strait was closed came as two Indian-flagged ships were attacked while trying to pass through the strait.<\/p>\n<p>The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said one tanker was fired upon by two Iranian gunships. A container ship was hit by an &ldquo;unknown projectile,&rdquo; it said.<\/p>\n<p>Iran said it was responding to the blockade of its ports.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Americans have announced a blockade in recent days; this is a reckless and misguided decision,&rdquo; Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is impossible for others to pass through the Strait of Hormuz while we cannot. If the United States does not lift the blockade, transit through the Strait of Hormuz will certainly be restricted,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<p>As tensions ratcheted higher, Trump said &ldquo;very <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/where-pivotal-trump-cabinet-nominations-stand-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Where pivotal ... Cabinet nominations stand - Washington Examiner\">good conversations&#038;rdquo<\/a>; continue with Iran and admitted the Iranians &ldquo;wanted to close up the strait again,&rdquo; according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/2026\/04\/18\/iran-strait-hormuz-us-oil\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p data-apitype=\"text\" data-contentid=\"IDS4CTKI4ND4ZKVOFVTE7ECZZ4\" data-el=\"text\" data-scroll-pos=\"2\" data-scroll-measured=\"true\">&ldquo;They can&rsquo;t blackmail us,&rdquo; Trump said.<\/p>\n<p data-apitype=\"text\" data-contentid=\"IDS4CTKI4ND4ZKVOFVTE7ECZZ4\" data-el=\"text\" data-scroll-pos=\"2\" data-scroll-measured=\"true\">A report from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2026\/04\/18\/iran-trump-white-house-hormuz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Axios<\/a> said that Trump convened a situation room meeting to discuss how to respond to the Iranian provocation.<\/p>\n<p data-apitype=\"text\" data-contentid=\"IDS4CTKI4ND4ZKVOFVTE7ECZZ4\" data-el=\"text\" data-scroll-pos=\"2\" data-scroll-measured=\"true\">The report, which said that combat could resume without a breakthrough, was attended by Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, White House envoy Steve Witkoff, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. Dan Caine.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/live-news\/trump-iran-us-war-strait-hormuz-blockade-israel-lebanon-april-18\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox News<\/a> said the blockade costs Iran an estimated $435 million per day, citing the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Their economy is on life support,&rdquo; former Ambassador-at-Large Nathan Sales said. &ldquo;So, for 47 years, the Iranian economy has faced economic mismanagement &mdash; add to that American sanctions pressure for several decades, add to that the destruction of the last 40 days of war. $435 million a day is a lot of money any day. It&rsquo;s especially devastating to the regime right now.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Former U.S. Central Command communications director Col. Joe Buccino said Iran will make closing the strait its main piece of leverage.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They understand the leverage they have [by] closing down the Strait of Hormuz,&rdquo; Buccino said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;re paying attention to the political toll within the United States, they are paying attention to gas prices, and they&rsquo;re paying attention to polling here in the United States with regard to this war,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The United States is preparing a tougher response to Iran\u2019s Saturday move to close the Strait of Hormuz, according to a new report. After Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said vessels would be blocked from passing through the strait, Washington is said to be stepping up its naval pressure on any ship tied to Iran, including the possibility of boarding Iran-linked oil tankers and seizing ships in international waters, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. The goal, the Journal said, is to increase economic pressure on Tehran to reopen the strait and secure concessions on Iran\u2019s nuclear program. <\/p>\n<p>Earlier, Iranian officials and President Trump had said the strait remained open, per The New York Times. Within hours, the IRGC announced the blockade, coinciding with attacks on two Indian-flagged ships attempting to transit Hormuz. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said one tanker was fired on by two Iranian gunships, and a container ship was struck by an unknown projectile, with Iran asserting it was responding to the blockade of its ports. <\/p>\n<p>Iranian lawmakers and officials denounced the blockade, with Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf calling the Americans\u2019 action reckless and saying that transit would be restricted if the blockade continued. Trump told The Washington Post that discussions with Iran were ongoing and that the Iranians wanted to close the strait again, while insisting the U.S. would not be blackmailed. Axios later reported that Trump convened a Situation Room meeting to consider how to respond to the provocation, with a high-level lineup that included Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, the Treasury secretary, the White House Chief of Staff, a White House envoy, the CIA director, and the Joint Chiefs chairman. Fox News cited the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in estimating that the blockade costs Iran about $435 million per day. <\/p>\n<p>Analysts like former Ambassador-at-Large Nathan Sales argued that Iran\u2019s economy is already fragile under long-standing sanctions, making the strait closure a potentially powerful bargaining chip for Tehran. Col. Joe Buccino said Iran understands the leverage it gains by shutting the Strait of Hormuz and is paying attention to the political and economic repercussions inside the United States<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2592478,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-18T212917.120.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[77170,78071,75480,74259,78070],"class_list":["post-2592477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-middle-east-security-2","tag-military-escalation-2","tag-strait-of-hormuz-2","tag-us-foreign-policy-2","tag-us-irgc-tensions"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-18T212917.120.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2592477"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2592481,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592477\/revisions\/2592481"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2592478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2592477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2592477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2592477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}