Even though the United States and Iran signalled that an agreement to end their war was close, with a senior US administration official saying Washington expects to sign an initial deal in the coming days, Strait of Hormuz again witnessed military action, Reuters reports.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that while changes in the deal were still possible, the tentative agreement showed his country had emerged stronger from the conflict.

“Iran is the winner of the war with the US,” he said on state television.

Araghchi said Iran would, along with Oman, retain control of traffic through the strait, which before the war handled one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supply.

“Our sword will always hang over the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.

Hours after those remarks, US forces shot down multiple Iranian one-way attack drones heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. Centcom later confirmed the action and said the waterway was open for transit.

Iranian news agencies had reported that explosions were heard along the strait in Iran’s Sirik port and Qeshm island, which residents and local officials attributed to shots fired by Iranian forces to warn vessels attempting to cross the waterway without permission from the IRGC navy.