Press TV, on Iran, 31 October 2026

6.0out of 10Serious

Iran

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Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains 70 percent below the levels recorded before the US-Israeli war on Iran, according to a weekly assessment by the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). The UKMTO released its weekly report on Friday, stating that shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained approximately 70 percent below pre-war levels, with 277 vessel movements recorded in the seven days leading up to October 28.

The strait remains under the control of Iranian forces, and . Since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Iranian Armed Forces have closed the Strait of Hormuz and warned that any vessel attempting to pass through the strategic chokepoint illegally would face attacks.

On June 17, Iran and the US reached a memorandum of understanding (MoU), with Pakistan playing a mediating role. Under Article 5 of the MoU, Iran undertook responsibility for reopening and managing the strait. However, by imposing a naval blockade . The move prompted Iran to close off the strait indefinitely. According to UKMTO data, at least 35 attacks on shipping were reported in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz in October, making it the month with the highest number of attacks since the start of the war.

The figure surpassed March’s total of 30 attacks. The UKMTO warned that its figures on attacks against vessels may not reflect the actual number of incidents, as many targeted vessels do not report attacks to the agency, so the numbers may be even higher. US President Donald Trump claims that the US Navy has removed or detonated all naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, urging vessels to use the route and repeatedly claiming that the strait is open and safe.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) officials, however, have repeatedly said that using the unauthorized routes proposed by the US is unsafe. They have also warned that vessel owners and crews would be held responsible for any attempt to use these routes in defiance of Iranian warnings. In a statement on Friday, the IRGC Navy said two tankers that attempted to cross the waterway through an unauthorized route were stopped following separate incidents.

The IRGC Navy also said that a supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of oil struck a naval mine while attempting to pass through an unauthorized route.

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What we found (2)

Press TV reports UKMTO figures showing Hormuz traffic far below pre-war levels and attacks on shipping at a wartime high, and it attributes those figures properly. But in its own voice it states Iran's legal position on the strait as fact, calling passage without Iranian permission illegal. It also tells the reader, as settled fact, that the US blockade broke the June deal and was meant to undermine Iranian sovereignty.

  1. States one side's claim as fact

    Serious

    “the US sought to undermine Iran’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz”

    Why this matters
    Press TV says in its own voice what the US was trying to do with its blockade. The words "sought to undermine Iran’s sovereignty" state an unseen motive.
    The impression it gives
    The reader takes it as established that the blockade's purpose was to attack Iranian sovereignty over the strait.
    The context
    This is Iran's reading of US intentions. The article attributes it to no one and gives no US account of why the blockade was imposed.

    Show it in the article

    “in violation of the deal to end the war”

    Why this matters
    Press TV states as its own finding that the US blockade broke the June memorandum of understanding.
    The impression it gives
    The reader believes the US breach of the deal is a settled fact, and that this breach caused Iran's indefinite closure in S9.
    The context
    The article quotes only Article 5, on Iran's role in reopening the strait. It shows no clause the blockade broke, and no US or Pakistani view of whether it did. The breach is one party's contested claim, presented without attribution.

    How we know

    • Elsewhere in the article“Iran undertook responsibility for reopening and managing the strait”

    Show it in the article

    Written straight

    The US later imposed a naval blockade, which Iran says violated the deal to end the war and undermined its sovereignty over the strait. Iran then closed the strait indefinitely.

  2. States one side's claim as fact

    Serious

    “vessels attempting to pass through the strategic waterway illegally risk coming under attack”

    Why this matters
    Press TV calls passage without Iranian permission "illegally" in its own narration. It is not reporting an Iranian warning here.
    The impression it gives
    The reader believes the illegality of these transits is an established legal fact, which frames attacks on such ships as enforcement of the law.
    The context
    That passage is illegal is Iran's position. Other reporting of the same events presents it as what Iran insists, not as fact. In S5, by contrast, Press TV places the same word inside the Iranian armed forces' warning.

    How we know

    Show it in the article

    “Ships seeking to use unauthorized routes will also face the risk of naval mines.”

    Why this matters
    Press TV repeats Iran's "unauthorized routes" label in its own voice. It also states as flat fact that such ships will face mines.
    The impression it gives
    The reader takes Iran's authorisation regime as the governing rule of the strait, and the mine danger as a neutral consequence of breaking it.
    The context
    The authorisation regime and the mine warnings come from Iranian forces. The US President disputes them, saying the mines have been removed. Other outlets attribute the term "unauthorized route" to Iran.

    How we know

    Show it in the article

    Written straight

    Iranian forces control the strait and have warned that vessels crossing without their authorisation, or using routes they have not approved, risk attack and naval mines.

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