Iran Says It Will Announce New Restricted Gulf Zone in Coming Days

Iran says it will announce a new restricted zone in the Gulf within days, along with maps for a shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, as renewed attacks on shipping drive oil prices higher.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the zone would begin where the US blockade of Iran starts and extend into Gulf waters. He gave few details, but said any ship entering it would be added to a sanctions list.

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The maps of a new international corridor which lies in Iranian and Omani waters and in which Iran will have management have been agreed and should be signed in the coming days.

Iran also plans to approve routes for what Rezaei called a new international corridor through Iranian and Omani waters. Iran would manage the route, he said. “We will only commit to the Strait of Hormuz being open when they, the Americans, stop the sabotage, threats and attacks on Iran,” he told state television.

The announcement comes as the conflict remains at a stalemate six months after US-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked the war, the report said. A preliminary ceasefire reached in June has unravelled, diplomatic efforts have made little progress and tit-for-tat strikes have resumed after a pause in August.

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We will only commit to the Strait of Hormuz being open when they, the Americans, stop the sabotage, threats and attacks on Iran.

US Central Command said US forces struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, including one near Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub. The strikes followed attacks by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps on US warships in the region. Shipping data showed an average of 10 commodity ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz each day over the previous 10 days, the lowest level since May. Brent crude rose 0.8% to above $97 a barrel.

Iran says it will intensify efforts to address the effects of US sanctions, but three senior Iranian sources said the blockade of oil exports and efforts to stop sanctions evasion were becoming increasingly difficult for the economy to withstand. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the rules had changed and warned that attacks on Iran’s interests or security would receive a faster and heavier response.

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From now on, any attack against Iran’s interests and security will receive a faster, heavier and more painful response.