Iran warns ships against deviating from marked route in Strait of Hormuz

Iran issued a stern warning on Sunday, stating that any vessel attempting to deviate from its demarcated route in the Strait of Hormuz would escalate tensions in the Middle East. The region remains on edge due to an exchange of attacks between Tehran and Washington in this strategically vital maritime passage.

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any vessel that attempts to deviate from the route demarcated by its country in the Strait of Hormuz 'will increase tensions' in the Middle East

The warning comes in the wake of Iran's reported missile and drone strikes on Kuwait and Bahrain, which Tehran claims were retaliation for U.S. attacks on its territory the previous day. These escalating actions threaten negotiations aimed at ending a protracted conflict. Both Iran and the U.S. accuse each other of violating a ceasefire agreement established in a memorandum of understanding signed on June 17, concerning the control of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking from Baghdad on Sunday, cautioned that "any attempt to take new or different measures than those already being implemented" by Iran "will only lead to more complicated situations and delays in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and will increase tensions." He urged all parties to avoid interfering with the management of the strait and to adhere to the agreed memorandum. Araghchi also called for the establishment of a security framework involving Gulf countries.

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any attempt to take new or different measures than those already being implemented by the Islamic Republic of Iran will only lead to more complicated situations and delays in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and will increase tensions.

The Strait reopened on June 17, but Iran insists on the use of a specific corridor along its coast, threatening any ship that fails to comply. In response to a U.S. drone attack on a Panamanian-flagged oil tanker passing through the strait, the U.S. Air Force reportedly struck ten targets in Iran on Saturday, including air defense facilities and drone storage sites.

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I urge all parties not to interfere in the management of the strait (...) and not to let the memorandum of understanding deviate from its course.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed on Sunday to have launched missiles and drones targeting "eight important U.S. military infrastructures" at Ali al Salem base in Kuwait and the Fifth Naval Fleet base in Salman Port, Bahrain. The Iranian Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks and affirmed Tehran's "determination to defend national sovereignty." Kuwait denounced Iran's "recurrence of cruel aggression," while Bahrain reported intercepting and destroying several projectiles in what it termed "treacherous Iranian attacks."

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eight important U.S. military infrastructures in the Ali al Salem base in Kuwait, and the Fifth Naval Fleet base in Port Salman in Bahrain