Iran to establish new restricted maritime zone outside Strait of Hormuz

Iran says it will establish a new restricted maritime zone outside the Strait of Hormuz within days, and that every ship entering it will be placed on a sanctions list.

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Every ship entering this new zone will be placed on the sanctions list.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the zone would begin at the U.S. Navy’s blockade line and extend into parts of the Gulf. He made the statement in an interview with Iran’s state television, Press TV.

Rezaei also said Iran and Oman would sign an agreement within days on a new corridor through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran would control the corridor’s entry and exit points. He insisted that the strait was “fully closed and under the control of the armed forces,” and called U.S. President Donald Trump’s statement that the strategic route remained open “a big lie.”

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Fully closed and under the control of the armed forces

Before Iran closed the strait, more than 100 ships carrying over 100 million tonnes of cargo crossed it each day, Rezaei said. He claimed that only seven or eight ships carrying basic necessities for Iran now pass through. He added that the United States had tried to move five or six ships through at great cost, but said those vessels were usually attacked, without explaining further.

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A big lie

Rezaei said Iran had decided not to sink the ships because they carried oil and doing so could damage the region’s environment. He also claimed that Iran had tested a new anti-ship missile against a U.S. Navy vessel about 48 hours earlier. “For the first time, we tested our anti-ship missile against an American warship,” he said. “This special missile makes America feel like it is in hell, and they flee.” He did not identify the ship or disclose the test location.

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For the first time, we tested our anti-ship missile against an American warship.