- Iran’s navy has vowed that the Strait of Hormuz “will never return to its former state”
Iran appears to have flatly rejected demands by Donald Trump to open up the Strait of Hormuz, after the US president issued an expletive-filled threat to escalate strikes.
An account attributed to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy, said in a post on X: “The Strait of Hormuz will never return to its former state, especially for America and Israel.
“The Navy of the IRGC is in the process of completing the operational preparations for the #Announced_Plan of Iran’s officials for the new order in the Persian Gulf.”
An aerial view of the Iranian shores and the island of Qeshm in the strait of Hormuz. File pic: Reuters
Iran charging ‘transit fees’
The statement appears to refer to a plan approved by Iran’s parliament to charge some ships – along with banning US and Israeli vessels – from transiting the strait, according to local media reports.
Lloyd’s List Intelligence said Iran was already operating what it called a ‘toll booth’ regime, adding that some shipping firms had already been making payments in Chinese currency.
Analysts have also suggested Iran is unlikely to open the strait any time soon, because it’s the only real leverage it has over the US.
Iran has ‘weapon of mass disruption’
Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group, a conflict prevention organisation, told the Reuters news agency that Iran understands the chokehold on the strait “is much more potent than even a nuclear weapon.”
“In the attempt to try to prevent Iran from developing a weapon of mass destruction, the US handed Iran a weapon of mass disruption,” he added.
Experts have told Reuters that any military operation to reopen the waterway, which separates Iran and Oman, involves considerable risks.
The strait is 21 miles (33 km) wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane itself is only 2 miles (3 km) wide for vessels travelling in both directions, making ships and troops easy targets.
@Sky News