Iranian officials say they have reversed the reopening of the strait of Hormuz and reimposed restrictions on the vital shipping lane after the US said it would not end its blockade of Iranian ports.<\/p>\n
A UK maritime agency reported that Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) ships had fired at a tanker as it attempted to pass through the strait on Saturday. Reuters reported an Indian-flagged vessel carrying crude oil had also been attacked while in the waterway.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command said on Saturday that Tehran had restored the strait to its \u201cprevious status\u201d and was now \u201cunder strict management and control by the armed forces\u201d.<\/p>\n
Iran said the restrictions would remain if Washington did not \u201censure full freedom of navigation for vessels travelling from Iran to destinations and from destinations to Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n
This was reiterated by the country\u2019s deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, and the IRGC\u2019s navy command.<\/p>\n
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of an annual Turkish diplomatic forum in Antalya, Khatibzadeh said the US \u201ccannot impose their will to do a siege over Iran, while Iran, with good intention, is trying to facilitate safe passage through the strait of Hormuz\u201d.<\/p>\n
In a post on X, the IRGC\u2019s navy command wrote: \u201cAs long as the movement of vessels from Iran and to Iran is under threat, the status of the strait of Hormuz will remain as it was previously. Any breach of commitments by the United States will receive an appropriate response.\u201d<\/p>\n
Iran officially closed the strait on 4 March in response to US-Israeli airstrikes on the country, and declared it back open<\/a> on Friday after a 10-day ceasefire deal<\/a> was agreed between Israel and Lebanon, as part of wider negotiations to achieve peace in the region.<\/p>\n The UK\u2019s Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it had received a report<\/a> from a tanker that had been approached and then fired on by \u201ctwo IRGC gunboats\u201d 20 nautical miles north-east of Oman. The captain said there had been no radio warning beforehand. The agency added that the tanker and crew were reported safe, and authorities were investigating the incident.<\/p>\n