Leavitt: Trump Demands Strait Of Hormuz Continues To Open, Calls Iran Closure Reports ‘Unacceptable’
Apr 08, 2026
(FOX NEWS) — White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that reports of Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz following Israeli military action in Lebanon are “completely unacceptable.”
“Well, with respect to the first reporting out of Iranian state media, the president was made
aware of those reports before I came to the podium. That is completely unacceptable,” Leavitt said.
“And again, this is a case of what they’re saying publicly is different privately. We have seen an uptick of traffic in the Strait today. And I will reiterate the president’s expectation and demand that the Strait of Hormuz is reopened immediately, quickly and safely. That is his expectation. It has been relayed to him privately that that is what’s taking place and these reports publicly are false,” Leavitt also said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the ceasefire agreement announced by President Donald Trump between the U.S. and Iran did not apply to Lebanon, meaning Israel would continue striking Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorists there.
The Israeli Air Force said earlier Wednesday it launched its “largest attack across Lebanon” since the beginning of Operation Roaring Lion.
“The Air Force completed a strike targeting approximately 100 command centers and military infrastructures of the Hezbollah terror organization across Beirut, the Bekaa, and southern Lebanon,” the Israeli Air Force said Wednesday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said before the White House press briefing that “The Iran–U.S. Ceasefire terms are clear and explicit: the U.S. must choose — ceasefire or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both.”
“The world sees the massacres in Lebanon. The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments,” Araghchi added.
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