Iran Strait of Hormuz Threat Persists Despite US Bombing, CENTCOM Chief Tells Senate

The head of U.S. forces in the Middle East delivered a mixed assessment to the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday: the bombing campaign against Iran has achieved its military objectives, but the threat to global commerce through the Strait of Hormuz has not been eliminated.

Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, told senators that Operation Epic Fury destroyed more than 90 percent of Iran's inventory of 8,000 naval mines and damaged or destroyed more than 85 percent of Iran's ballistic missile, drone, and naval industrial base through over 1,450 strikes on weapons-manufacturing facilities. He said it would take Iran "a generation" to rebuild its navy and years for its drone and missile production to recover.

But Cooper acknowledged that Iran still maintains some capability to threaten ships in the strait, and that the perception of threat alone is enough to disrupt global shipping.

"The Iranian ability to stop commerce has been dramatically degraded through the straits, but their voice is very loud, and those threats are clearly heard by the merchant industry and the insurance industry," Cooper said. In other words, Iran does not need to actually block the strait to affect oil markets. The threat alone drives up insurance premiums, reroutes shipping, and increases costs that get passed on to consumers.

## The Numbers Behind the Campaign

The scope of Operation Epic Fury is staggering by recent standards. More than 1,450 strikes against Iranian weapons infrastructure. Ninety percent of naval mines destroyed. Eighty-five percent of ballistic missile, drone, and naval production capacity damaged. Cooper said that between November and December 2025, U.S. Central Command observed an increase in Iran's capability and intent to produce more ballistic missiles, which presented "a very significant risk" that factored into the decision to launch the operation.

Iran retains roughly 70 percent of its ballistic missile inventory, according to CBS News reporting from April, though Cooper declined to confirm that figure, citing classification.

The ceasefire reached on April 7 remains in effect, Cooper said, despite the ongoing U.S. Navy blockade of Iranian ports and exchanges of fire last week. The administration has told Congress that hostilities with Iran have terminated, a characterization that some senators found at odds with the continued naval blockade and last week's exchanges of fire.

## The Legal Questions Nobody Can Answer

Democratic Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia raised a point that should concern every American regardless of party: the Senate Armed Services Committee has not been allowed to see the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel opinion that justified the president's authority to launch strikes against Iran.

"We're being asked to fund a $1.5 trillion budget, but our request of the DOJ to see the OLC opinion justifying this war, they have refused to allow members of the Armed Services Committee to see it," Kaine said. "If they will not allow us to see the legal rationale for the war, what are they hiding?"

This is not a partisan point. The OLC opinion is the legal foundation for the use of military force. If Congress cannot review it while being asked to fund the consequences, the constitutional balance of war powers is fundamentally broken. Republican Senator Roger Wicker, the committee chairman, acknowledged that Cooper would not be the person to provide that opinion, effectively confirming that the legislative branch is being asked to write checks without seeing the invoice.

## The Strait of Hormuz: Why It Matters Beyond the Persian Gulf

The Strait of Hormuz is the world's most critical oil chokepoint. Roughly 20 percent of global oil consumption passes through it daily. Every insurance premium increase, every shipping route detour, every day a tanker captain hesitates before transiting translates directly into higher energy prices worldwide.

Cooper's testimony makes clear that the military dimension of the Hormuz threat has been substantially reduced. But the economic dimension, driven by perception and insurance markets, persists. Oil prices remain elevated. The 10-year Treasury yield has climbed from 3.97 percent in late February to 4.44 percent as of Thursday, driven in part by inflation expectations tied to energy costs.

## What This Means For You

The Strait of Hormuz may seem distant, but its impact is immediate. If you buy gasoline, heating oil, or anything made with petroleum products, and that is everything, you are already paying the Hormuz premium. The military campaign reduced the physical threat, but the economic threat, driven by insurance costs, shipping detours, and market anxiety, continues to push prices higher.

Mortgage rates, which had dipped below 6 percent in February, are now above 6.3 percent, partly because bond yields have risen on inflation fears tied to energy costs. If you are looking to buy a home, refinance, or carry credit card debt, the Hormuz situation is costing you real money.

The legal question matters too. If the president can launch a sustained military campaign without Congress reviewing the legal justification, and Congress can be asked to fund the consequences without seeing the rationale, the system of checks and balances that is supposed to protect citizens from executive overreach is not functioning. This is not about whether the strikes were warranted. It is about whether the people's representatives have the information they need to do their job. They do not.