Key facts
- Iran plans to block "illegal routes" in the Strait of Hormuz, an adviser to the Revolutionary Guards stated.
- These routes are used for smuggling oil and transferring it to tankers, according to the official.
- The Strait of Hormuz is closed and under Iran's full control, an IRGC adviser claimed.
- There were 12 attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz in the week of Sept. 28-Oct. 5, the highest weekly total since the Iran war began.
- Twelve crew members were injured when the Panama-flagged oil tanker On Peace was struck by an unknown projectile in the strait.
Iran intends to block transit routes in the Strait of Hormuz that it considers illegal, an adviser to the Revolutionary Guards' Commander told the semi-official Fars News Agency. Mohammadreza Naqdi stated that these "few routes" were created by damaging rocky passages and are used for smuggling oil to tankers, challenging the narrative that Gulf oil exports are recovering.
Naqdi asserted that the Strait of Hormuz is closed and under the full control of Iran's armed forces, adding that this situation will persist until Iran's "legitimate demands are met."
In the week of September 28-October 5, there were at least 12 attacks on oil, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas tankers around the Strait of Hormuz, according to data from three maritime security sources. This was the highest number of attacks in a single week since the US war with Iran began on February 28, the sources said. Separate data collated by the UN's shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), showed nine incidents involving vessels in the same week.
The Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), led by the US Navy, said in a note on Sunday that attacks, attempted attacks, and harassment activity including drone overflights, surveillance, and hailing using VHF radio by Iran's Revolutionary Guards have persisted in the strait. "These actions continue to demonstrate Iran’s intent to assert presence along key transit lanes and maintain pressure on transiting vessels," the JMIC said.
India's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that 12 crew members were injured after an unknown projectile struck Panama-flagged oil tanker On Peace while it was passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Despite claims of increasing oil flows, another IRGC adviser, Majid Mirahmadi, stated on Thursday that an average of 10 ships transit the waterway daily, compared to an average of 125 before the war.