Iran says it plans to block what it calls “illegal routes” through the Strait of Hormuz, according to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) official. CBS reports the IRGC official frames the move as closing routes Iran deems unauthorized.
Other outlets provide additional detail. Cyprus Mail and Al-Monitor, citing the semi-official Fars News Agency, report that an adviser to the IRGC commander, Mohammadreza Naqdi, says the closure concerns a limited set of routes along the southern stretch near Oman’s coast. The reporting states the routes were reportedly created by blasting and damaging rocky passages.
The outlets also include a rationale. Reuters-linked reporting in Al-Monitor says Naqdi characterizes these routes as having been used by small boats to smuggle oil and transfer it to tankers. This is presented alongside a dispute over narratives about whether Gulf oil exports are returning to pre-war levels.
