Iran to Announce New Gulf Restricted Zone and Strait of Hormuz Shipping Corridor

Iran says it will announce a new restricted zone in the Gulf within days, along with maps for a new shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz. The announcement came after weekend strikes on shipping sent oil prices higher.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said the restricted zone would begin where the US blockade of Iran starts and extend into Gulf waters. He gave few details, but said any ship entering the zone 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.

Rezaei also said maps for a new international corridor in Iranian and Omani waters had been agreed and should be signed soon. Iran would manage the corridor, 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," Rezaei said.

The announcement comes six months after US-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked the war. A preliminary ceasefire reached in June has unravelled, while diplomatic efforts to revive the peace process have made little progress. After military action paused for much of August, strikes by both sides resumed.

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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 forces struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, according to US Central Command, including one off Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export hub. The strikes followed attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on US warships in the region. Tehran has shown that it can still attack US interests in neighboring countries and disrupt oil flows through the strait, which carried about a fifth of global oil supplies before the conflict.

Shipping data showed an average of 10 commodity ships passed through the strait each day over the previous 10 days, the lowest level since May. Brent crude rose 0.8% to above $97 a barrel. Iran also said it would intensify efforts to address the effects of US sanctions, which it says are crippling its economy. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that future attacks on Iran's interests and security would receive a faster, heavier and more painful 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.