NO UNAUTHORIZED PASSAGE
IRGC Strikes Giant LPG Carrier, Vows Wider Pursuit of Hormuz Violators
Iran takes aim at Washington for deceiving shipping and insurance companies and paying large bribes to facilitate unauthorized transits, warning that continued US interference will cause “bitter incidents” to increase day by day.
TEHRAN -- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) declared Friday that its forces struck a giant liquefied petroleum gas carrier attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz through an illegal route, and warned that from this moment forward, violators will be pursued and “definitely punished” across the entire region — not merely at the Strait.
The IRGC Navy identified the vessel as the NV Sunshine, owned by Natwit, saying it was hit while attempting to transit an unauthorized passage south of the Strait of Hormuz, igniting a massive fire in the engine room and propulsion system.
The statement, carried by the IRGC's official Sepah News outlet, said the ship was targeted as part of Iran's enforcement of its sovereignty over the strategic waterway.
In language that left no ambiguity about attribution, the IRGC declared that “direct responsibility for these incidents and the escalation of tensions in the region's maritime transport rests with the aggressor American army”.
The statement hit out at Washington for intervening in and deceiving the management of shipping and insurance companies and paying large bribes to facilitate unauthorized transits, warning that if such interference continues, “bitter incidents will increase day by day”.
The IRGC Navy issued three specific and escalating measures. First, companies that allow themselves to be deceived by the United States will be sanctioned, and “necessary punitive measures will be enforced against all vessels belonging to the violating companies”.
Second, enforcement actions will no longer be confined to the Strait of Hormuz; any vessel using an unauthorized passage “will be pursued throughout the region, and punishment will be certain”.
Third, the IRGC reaffirmed that its naval forces are in full control of the Strait, will not permit the presence of “aggressor armies,” and will “firmly confront the enemy's malicious attempts to obstruct” Iran's management of the waterway.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported Friday that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile 13 nautical miles west of Al Jazeera, UAE, causing a fire that was later extinguished.
UKMTO did not name the vessel, though shipping and security sources later identified it to Reuters as the Panama-flagged crude supertanker GEM NO.2, which was fully laden
with oil and at anchor off the UAE coast. Maritime security sources noted the strike occurred outside the Hormuz area.
The strike came as Iran's military leadership issued a wave of warnings marking IRGC Navy Day. IRGC Commander-in-Chief Major General Ahmad Vahidi declared that Iran's strategy in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz is “clear, principled and unchanging”.
He stressed that the security of the waters is “indigenous and regional” and that “no extra-regional power has the right to threaten, establish a hegemonic presence or interfere”.
Vahidi called the Strait of Hormuz “the vital artery of global energy and a strategic red line of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” adding that “protecting it means protecting national interests, the security of the Iranian people and Iran's dignity.”
He said the IRGC Navy is equipped with precision-guided missiles, attack drones, fast boats, electronic warfare capabilities and a coastal defense network, and warned that “any threat from the U.S.-Zionist camp will be met with vigilance, unified command and the full preparedness of this force”.
IRGC Deputy Commander Major General Mostafa Izadi, visiting troops on the southern islands and northern Strait of Hormuz, said IRGC and army forces are “fully prepared to defend the Strait,” adding that “the Strait of Hormuz today is under the control and in the grip of Islamic warriors.”
Defense Ministry spokesman Brigadier General Reza Talaei-Nik said Thursday that Iranian weapons production has surged 2.5 times compared with the period before the war, achieved through secure alternative production sites and some 9,000 private knowledge-based companies.
He said enemy naval forces have withdrawn and that further defeats await those seeking to sustain aggression in the region.
The developments came after IRGC senior advisor Brigadier General Muhammad Reza Naqdi said Wednesday that Tehran will "soon" block the "illegal routes" established in the Strait of Hormuz.
"A small number of routes created by individuals engaged in illicit activities, by blasting and destroying sections of rocky passages in the Strait of Hormuz, will soon be blocked," Naqdi said.
"The Strait of Hormuz is closed, and the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran have complete control over it. This situation will continue until Iran's legitimate demands are met."
Iran restricted transit through the Strait of Hormuz after the US-Israeli aggression began on February 28. The June 17 Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding placed responsibility for reopening and managing the Strait in Iran's hands.
Washington then resumed airstrikes and imposed a naval blockade in violation of the deal, prompting Iran to declare the Strait closed to all traffic — sending oil and gas prices soaring.
The IRGC has since carried out daily strikes on vessels violating its regulations, with maritime security sources reporting the highest weekly number of attacks on tankers since the war began.