IRGC Warns No Gulf Port Will Be Safe After US Blockade on Iranian Maritime Traffic
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a stark warning on Monday, declaring that “no port in the Gulf and the Sea of Oman will be safe” following a US decision to impose a blockade on all traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement carried by state broadcaster IRIB, the IRGC said maritime security in the Gulf and the Sea of Oman is “either for everyone or for no one,” emphasizing its position that any restriction imposed on Iran would be met with reciprocal measures. The statement framed Iran’s response as part of what it described as the legitimate defense of its territorial sovereignty.
The IRGC further asserted that Iranian armed forces consider the protection of the country’s legal rights a “natural and lawful duty,” adding that exercising control over Iran’s territorial waters is a sovereign right. It warned that “enemy-affiliated vessels” would be denied passage through the Strait of Hormuz, while other ships could transit only under regulations set by Tehran.
Citing what it called continuing hostile threats, the IRGC said Iran would implement a “permanent mechanism” for controlling the Strait of Hormuz even after the end of hostilities. It also condemned US restrictions on maritime movement in international waters as “illegal” and amounting to “piracy.”
The announcement comes after Washington declared it would enforce a blockade on Iranian ports starting at 1400 GMT on Monday. The US move follows rare direct talks between the two sides in Islamabad, which ended without agreement after discussions aimed at de-escalating ongoing tensions that escalated following a joint US-Israeli offensive on Tehran earlier this year.
