Iran's Revolutionary Guard Claims Total Control Over Hormuz Strait Passage

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has declared that no vessel may transit the Strait of Hormuz without its explicit coordination and approval, as a controlled resumption of commercial shipping passage through one of the world's most strategically vital waterways gets underway.

The IRGC stated that commercial vessels from non-hostile nations may transit the strait only in accordance with the conditions set by the Islamic Republic of Iran, at designated times, and along pre-approved routes.

Any vessel attempting to pass through the restricted zone without prior coordination and authorization, the Guard warned, would be targeted by IRGC naval forces.

Iran's state television reported that 24 commercial vessels were granted passage through the strait in the preceding 24 hours.

Some of those ships transited from the Hormuz Strait toward the Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, and beyond, while others passed through in the opposite direction returning to the Gulf.

All transits, according to the channel, were conducted through coordination with IRGC naval forces and Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

IRGC naval public relations disclosed that the number of commercial vessels holding transit authorization for the strait is significantly higher than the 24 that passed in the 24-hour window, but that daily passage is rationed through a coordinated scheduling system to prevent congestion and ensure vessel security.

The IRGC reaffirmed that the ban on transit by warships and commercial vessels belonging to nations it considers enemies of Iran remains fully in effect.

Iranian media noted that commercial vessel movement through the Strait of Hormuz has increased compared to recent weeks and months, though it has not returned to pre-conflict levels.

The resumption comes as data published by the London Stock Exchange Group and maritime monitoring firm Kepler revealed that earlier this week, two supertankers carrying crude oil and one liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier transited the Hormuz Strait.

Those vessels, the data showed, are linked to a chain of other ships that departed the Gulf region this month, even as the overall movement of oil and gas through the waterway remains broadly restricted.