Friday will mark the 60-day statutory deadline to conclude the conflict.
President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military, government and infrastructure sites.
Following the announcement of a two-week ceasefire, initial U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan earlier this month failed to reach a peace deal.
Trump later announced the open-ended extension of the ceasefire and the continuation of the blockade until Iran's proposal is submitted and discussions are concluded "one way or the other."
Israeli forces have killed at least 2,586 people and wounded another 8,020 in Lebanon since March 2, according to the latest tally from the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
At least 184 children are among the dead and at least 735 children were injured, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said.
The Trump administration is seeking the participation of other countries to form an international coalition to help re-open the Strait of Hormuz.
Dubbed the "Maritime Freedom Construct," the coalition would help with coordinating diplomatic efforts, including aligning on sanctions and information sharing to help with safe transit through the waterway, according to a U.S. official.
A cable sent this week by the State Department to posts around the world called on diplomats to announce the formation of the new coalition and "ask for partner participation" by Friday.
"The MFC’s efforts will enhance maritime domain awareness and support the safe passage of commercial operators and their crews," a State Department official said.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on the cable.
Notably, the United Kingdom and France have already launched a multilateral effort involving at least 30 nations toward securing the strait that could eventually involve deploying military assets if a peace deal is reached. During a Pentagon press briefing last week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismissed the U.K. and French effort as “silly."
-ABC News’ Mariam Khan
The Trump administration is in “active conversations” with lawmakers about requesting Congressional authorization for the war in Iran, according to a White House official.
Friday will mark the 60-day statutory deadline to conclude the conflict, according to the War Powers Resolution of 1973.
After the U.S. and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, President Donald Trump on March 2 formally submitted to Congress a war powers notification against the Iranian regime. Congress has not yet voted to authorize the war.
Most Democratic members of Congress and several Republicans have long objected to Trump’s military action in Iran, stating the administration has not been forthcoming with lawmakers or the American public about their objectives. These leaders have also tried to curtail the military action by forcing several War Powers Resolution debates and votes.
-ABC News’ Isabella Murray
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Senate committee at a hearing Thursday that the U.S.’s "military objectives have been stunningly effective."
"Take, for example, [Iran’s] defense industrial base," Hegseth said. "They are completely incapable, at scale, at any level of reconstituting the capabilities you referred to, which is a devastating result for any country, especially one whose ambitions are as wide as Iran's."
"So we've put the president in a very strong position to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon," Hegseth continued. "That's the takeaway that's been underneath every single aspect of this."
-ABC News’ Chris Boccia and Luis Martinez
