Afət Ziyadqızı
Mohammad Reza Naghdi, an adviser to the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said Tehran intends to fully block what it calls illegal shipping routes in the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.
Operative Information Center-OMM reports that, speaking to Iran’s state broadcaster, Naghdi said: “The Strait of Hormuz is closed, and we will put an end to the operation of illegal routes.”
He stressed that the strait would remain closed until Tehran’s political and military demands are met. Separately, IRGC representative Hossein Mohebi said Tehran was also preventing smaller vessels from passing through the strait.
In contrast, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently claimed that the volume of oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz was approaching levels recorded before the conflict between Washington and Tehran began.
The military confrontation between the sides intensified after US and Israeli strikes on strategic sites in Iran on Feb. 28. Although a memorandum on halting hostilities was signed in June, reciprocal strikes later resumed. The Strait of Hormuz is a major route for global shipments of oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas (LNG). Disruption to navigation there has contributed to sharp increases in energy prices on world markets.
