Iran Warns of Wider Energy Route Disruptions Amid Strait of Hormuz Conflict

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned that it could target additional energy export routes used by the United States and its allies, raising concerns over global shipping lanes beyond the Strait of Hormuz. The warning, carried by Iranian state media, came after Tehran shut the Strait of Hormuz and as US forces continued strikes on Iranian military targets.

The US reimposed a naval blockade on Iran and intensified its airstrike campaign in retaliation for Tehran's attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The IRGC said in a statement, 'Regional energy exports are either shared by all, or denied to all.' According to Iranian media, the Guards also threatened to shut 'all other export corridors that benefit the US and its allies.'

Analysts have previously said Iran could seek to expand the conflict by leveraging its Houthi allies in Yemen to disrupt shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is a critical maritime chokepoint for global trade and oil exports. A senior Houthi official said on Monday that the group was prepared to close the strait if Saudi Arabia continued military operations in Yemen, potentially driving crude oil prices to $200 per barrel.

The warning followed renewed hostilities between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia after the Houthis accused Riyadh of carrying out an airstrike on an airport under their control. The Houthis launched missile attacks toward Saudi territory, ending a four-year truce in the Yemen conflict. The group has previously disrupted commercial shipping in the Red Sea, targeting vessels linked to Israel in support of Palestinians.

The US military announced on Tuesday that it had begun another round of strikes aimed at reducing Iranian capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. The US said Iran had attacked seven commercial vessels over the past week, resulting in deaths, injuries, and missing crew members. US Central Command said American forces struck dozens of military targets near the Strait of Hormuz and along Iran's southern coastline during a seven-hour operation.

Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said at least 30 civilians had been killed in recent US strikes in southern Iran. Iran's military said overnight US attacks on the Bampur military base in southeastern Iran killed at least seven active-duty and conscript personnel. The IRGC said the Strait of Hormuz would remain shut until 'the end of America's evils.' Before the current conflict, roughly one-fifth of the world's daily oil and natural gas shipments transited through the Strait of Hormuz.