{"id":"f-445134d771-a0009b6f-c6e0-5805-aa21-293426b29677","title":"How Iran Controls The Strait of Hormuz, A Strategic Sea Passage for Oil and Gas","description":"Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to attacks from the US and Israel, blocking a vital maritime passage for oil and gas shipments.","timestamp":1772721193,"category":"international","headline":"How Iran Controls The Strait of Hormuz, A Strategic Sea Passage for Oil and Gas","modifiedHeadline":"Iran Blocks Key Oil Route, Threatens Action","subCategories":["scid_190e9d77"],"subcategoriesName":["Middle East"],"region":"IN","bundleMetaData":{"bundleId":"c80449a0-0ad6-472b-8d17-5747dd8f5c83","bundleTitle":"Around the globe","cardData":null},"iabCategoryId":"389","iabCategoryName":"War and Conflicts","fcSummary":"iran has closed the strait of hormuz, a vital waterway for global oil and gas trade, in retaliation for recent attacks by the u.s. and israel. the irgc is using this strategic chokepoint to exert pressure, threatening military action against unauthorized vessels. iran employs naval mines, speedboats, missiles, drones, and jamming technology to control the passage, demanding prior permission for all ships. the closure risks escalating tensions and impacting energy prices.","summary":"Iran blocks Strait of Hormuz, a key oil & gas route, retaliating after attacks. Threatens military action against unauthorized tankers.","ctaUrl":"https://trends.glance.com/newz/news/IN/en/timesnow/f-445134d771-a0009b6f-c6e0-5805-aa21-293426b29677","sourceUrl":"https://www.timesnownews.com/world/middle-east/how-iran-controls-the-strait-of-hormuz-a-strategic-sea-passage-for-oil-gas-tankers-in-world-article-153761309","bannerImage":"https://g-mob.glance-cdn.com/public/fc/image/OHaUNmg9zCV0.webp","content":"

Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, blocking an essential and one of the most important sea passages, critical for oil and gas tankers’ movement, as a retaliatory

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measure after US and Israel attack. The Strait of Hormuz, a 21-mile-wide (33 km approx) at its narrowest points, is a very crucial sea route responsible for approximately 20 percent of the world’s oil and natural gas trade. Ever since a joint attack by the US and Israel, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced the closure of this important route, using it as a strategic chokepoint to pressure the world. Iran has threatened all nations that any unauthorised passage by any tanker will call for military action. Iran, though not a military super power, has unilaterally choked Hormuz given that Saudi Arabia also shares its boundary with this passage. Let’s understand how Iran is capable of blocking the route, that nations don’t dare to cross without prior permission. Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz using a combination of things including highly effective military capabilities, legal assertions, and geographical advantage.

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\n \n https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YbiKFZwwm8\n \n

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Military and Asymmetric Tactics

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Naval Mines

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\nIran has naval mines that it can deploy across the Strait of Hormuz using its speedboats to block oil and natural gas tankers. According to an estimate, Iran has around 5,000 - 6,000 naval mines that it can rapidly deploy via speedboats to block shipping lanes. \n
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Fast Attack Boats

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\nBesides naval mines, Iran has speedboats that can cruise with an average speed of around 90 km per hour and reach up to 150 km per hour at its top speed. These boats are armed with short and medium-range missiles and guns. They are also called ‘Mosquito Boats’, that can launch attacks like a swarm to block and damage tankers.\n
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\n \n https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5HckvQBRg\n \n

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Missiles and Drones

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\nIran also has its Shahed-136 drones that have a range of 700-1000 km and anti-ship ballistic missiles to target tankers from mainland or offshore platforms. \n
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How Iran Keeps Track of Ships or Tankers

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\nIran has the capability of jamming GPS signals and keeps track of the movement of tankers and ships using its radars to disrupt vessel navigation. \n
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Prior Permission

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\nIran has this rule that all the ships, foreign warships, submarines, and nuclear-powered ships should obtain advance permission to pass through the Strait of Hormuz to obtain “innocent passage” through its waters. However, this claim has been contested by the US.\n
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\n \n https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97yEyfQEVjY\n \n

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Where Do Ships Travel Via Strait of Hormuz?

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\nFrom Hormuz, ships can then travel to the rest of the world. While Iran and Oman have their territorial waters in the strait, it's viewed as an international waterway all ships can ply. The United Arab Emirates, home to the skyscraper-studded city of Dubai, also sits near the waterway.\n
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The strait long has been important for trade

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\nThe Strait of Hormuz through history has been important for trade, with ceramics, ivory, silk, and textiles moving from China through the region. In the modern era, it is the route for supertankers carrying oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE, and Iran. The vast majority of it goes to markets in Asia, including Iran's only remaining oil customer, China.\n
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\nWhile there are pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the UAE that can avoid the passage, the U.S. Energy Information Administration says “most volumes that transit the strait have no alternative means of exiting the region.”\n
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\nThreats to the route have spiked global energy prices in the past, including during the Israel-Iran war in June.\n
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With inputs from AP\n

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How Iran Controls The Strait of Hormuz, A Strategic Sea Passage for Oil and Gas

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