Welcome to meet the press now.

I'm Monica Alba in Washington, where the Trump administration is downplaying concerns

that the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is unraveling.

Despite Iran's renewed aggression in the Strait of Hormuz, armed clashes with U.S. and Iran is unraveling. Despite Iran's renewed aggression in the Strait of Hormuz,

armed clashes with U.S. forces and strikes in the region, as gas prices continue to rise,

and the price of oil remains above $100 a barrel. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is wrapping up a

briefing at the White House with reporters where he was pressed

about the status of the war in Iran and the current U.S. operations to guide vessels through the

strait. He told reporters that the war was, quote, over, but the turmoil in the strait was not.

This is not an offensive operation. This is a defensive operation. And what that means is very simple. There's no shooting unless we're shot at first. We're not attacking them. But if they're attacking us or they're attacking a ship, you need to respond to that. Look, the times come for Iran to make a sensible choice. And it's not easy for them to do that, obviously, because they have a fracture in their own leadership system.

And apart from that, I mean, the top people in that government are, to say the least, you know,

they're insane in the brain.

And so we need to address that.

Operation is over.

Epic Fury is the president notified Congress.

We're done with that stage of it.

Secretary Rubio was adamant that Iran cannot be allowed to normalize control of the

strait, tacitly acknowledging that Iran does in fact have control of the vital waterway.

In direct contrast to what the president has said in recent weeks about the U.S. controlling

the street.

These guys have shut down the streets of our moves.

This is what Iran is saying.

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