Iran Declares Strait of Hormuz Closed, Threatens Any Passing Ships

Iran has announced that the Strait of Hormuz is closed and warned it will target any vessel attempting to pass, according to Iranian media.

The strait, a key global shipping route between Oman and Iran, is critical for energy exports. Around one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through it. At its narrowest, the waterway is just 21 miles (33 km) wide, with two-mile (3 km) shipping lanes in each direction. Last year, more than 20 million barrels of crude, condensates, and fuel traversed the strait daily, according to analytics firm Vortexa.

Several major oil exporters, including Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Iraq, rely on the strait to ship most of their crude, primarily to Asia. Qatar, one of the world’s largest liquefied natural gas producers, sends nearly all of its LNG through the passage.

The warning from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps comes amid ongoing hostilities in the region following US and Israeli attacks on Iran last Saturday. Iran has retaliated with strikes on US and Israeli targets. In response, multiple Middle Eastern countries have closed airspace and suspended public services.

The conflict has so far claimed over 600 lives in Iran, six US soldiers, and ten confirmed fatalities in Strait of Hormuz. The US government has urged its citizens in more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries, including Israel, to leave immediately for safety.