ashington’s own numbers now tell a story of vulnerability in Hormuz. A classified Pentagon assessment, later leaked to the Washington Post, warns it could take up to six months to fully clear Iranian naval mines from the Strait of Hormuz—meaning the world’s most critical oil chokepoint may remain partially crippled well into the future. Lawmakers were told the U.S. is unlikely to even start a full-scale clearance effort until the active phase of the U.S.–Iran war ends, because minesweeping in the narrow, fast‑moving strait is complex, dangerous, and heavily contested. Officials believe Iran has already laid more than 20 mines using small boats and GPS‑guided drifting devices, with defense intelligence estimating Tehran still holds thousands more tailored to Hormuz’s currents and depth. Some assessments even suggest Iran itself may not be able to retrieve all the mines it scattered after U.S. and Israeli strikes began, turning parts of the waterway into a semi‑permanent hazard zone. For critics, the six‑month timeline amounts to a quiet admission that Iran now has enduring leverage over Hormuz, a route that carried roughly 20 percent of global oil flows before the war and still underpins global energy prices.