TEHRAN — Iran’s top military commanders declared Friday that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States respects the Iranian nation’s legitimate rights.
They revealed that U.S. warships have been forced to retreat more than 500 kilometers from Iran’s coast and warning that new operational plans will push American forces even farther from the region.
Major General Amir Hatami, commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, said the strategic waterway “was closed immediately at the start of the war, remains closed today, and will remain closed until the enemy respects the rights of the Iranian nation.”
Speaking at Imam Ali Officer University, Hatami described the strait as a core pillar of Iran’s geopolitical power and said claims that the waterway is open are “false.”
“The Strait of Hormuz, which they falsely say is open, is under the complete supervision of the Army and the IRGC,” Hatami said.
“The western section of the Strait of Hormuz is managed and controlled by the Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and the eastern section of the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman by the Navy of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.”
He added that “no enemy vessel has dared to enter the Sea of Oman, except for those three vessels that came and were subjected to multiple firings.”
Hatami said Iran decided “a few days ago to take decisive action” in the Strait of Hormuz and has done so.
“Today they know that traffic is very limited, and a large number of violating vessels have either hit mines or been struck.”
He also warned that any threat to Iran’s infrastructure would trigger
a response several times greater in scale, striking the infrastructure and interests of the opposing side, as well as the Israeli regime and any country that cooperates with it.
Army spokesman Brigadier General Muhammad Akraminia said U.S. naval vessels “have been forced to distance themselves more than 500 kilometers from our country’s coasts, and today even American military ships are not present in the Sea of Oman.”
He added that “new operational plans are being implemented that, with their execution in the coming days, will force American vessels to retreat further and distance themselves from the region.”
Akraminia said U.S. forces “do not dare approach the Strait of Hormuz” despite President Donald Trump’s claims of controlling the waterway.
“The President of America claims to control the Strait of Hormuz and has even put his name on this strait, but the military forces of this country do not dare approach the Strait of Hormuz.”
He also rejected Trump’s claims that Iran’s defenses had been destroyed, saying the country’s air defense coverage has been significantly strengthened compared to before the war, with damaged equipment repaired and new systems added.
“Contrary to the American president’s claims, the country’s defense capability has not only not been destroyed, but extensive measures have been taken to strengthen and upgrade it,” Akraminia said, citing the recent downing of several U.S. drones over Iranian airspace.
Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, deputy coordinator of the Army, said the strait’s closure is evident from global fuel markets.
“The Strait of Hormuz is closed; if it were not closed, oil would pass through it and gasoline prices in America would not increase,” Sayyari said Thursday.
“As long as countries are struggling to secure gasoline and diesel, it means the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked, and this is clear proof of that.”
He warned: “Anyone who enters the Strait of Hormuz without coordination will see in the news what happens.”
Sayyari said the IRGC Navy “stands firm” in the western Strait of Hormuz, while the Army maintains a powerful presence from the eastern strait to the northern Sea of Oman, exercising “one hundred percent control and oversight over the region.”
The commanders’ remarks came as the Iranian Army Navy reported a third oil tanker caught fire in restricted waters east of the Strait of Hormuz this week after switching off its tracking systems.
The Navy said its monitoring teams detected the “violating” tanker within a prohibited area east of the strait earlier Friday.
“This violating oil tanker had also switched off its tracking systems and was attempting to pass through a prohibited area in the Sea of Oman,” the statement said, stressing that “uncoordinated movements along prohibited routes and areas result in the creation of insecurity and serious hazards for other vessels.”
The incident marked the third such case since Tuesday. On Tuesday, the Navy reported a damaged oil tanker that caught fire east of the strait after entering a restricted area with tracking systems disabled.
On Thursday, the IRGC Navy said it spotted another non-compliant tanker on fire in a restricted zone east of Hormuz during routine patrols. The Navy did not identify the vessel, its flag, or operator, and gave no details on the cause of the fire or the crew’s condition.
Akraminia warned that ships intending to enter the region and pass through the Strait of Hormuz “must coordinate with the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran prior to their entry, so that they can pass through this waterway safely.”
He said the United States has been forcing vessels to use an illegal route south of the strait in recent weeks.
“This route is unsafe and unsuitable, and some ships that have passed through it have sustained damage,” he said, warning that the U.S. actions have exposed commercial vessels and cargoes to more risks.
Vessels that coordinated with Iranian forces, he said, passed through “easily” and “succeeded in importing or exporting their cargoes and goods via this route.”
On naval responsibilities, Akraminia said the western Strait of Hormuz to the Persian Gulf remains under the strategic control of the IRGC Navy, while the eastern Strait of Hormuz, the Sea of Oman, the Arabian Sea, and the northern Indian Ocean fall under the Army Navy’s area of responsibility.
He said the Army Navy possesses extensive intelligence and operational capabilities in its zone, compelling U.S. forces to maintain their distance.
The spokesman identified the United States as the primary cause of insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz and the broader region.
“The region was calm before the outbreak of the war; U.S. interventions have fueled tensions and caused harm to both the global economy and the economies of the regional states,” he said.
He called on regional nations to strengthen cooperation and establish a joint security mechanism to facilitate the withdrawal of U.S. forces, saying “lasting peace, calm, and stability can be achieved only through the end of the U.S. presence and interference in the region.”
Major General Mostafa Izadi, deputy commander-in-chief of the IRGC, said Iran’s armed forces stand fully prepared on land, at sea, and in the air, stressing that the United States has failed in Iraq just as it did in Afghanistan.
“Today, too, we stand against the aggression of the criminal United States and the Zionist regime; and, just as in the Sacred Defense, through the self-sacrifice and resistance of the warriors of Islam, we will not permit any form of aggression against our beloved homeland,” Izadi said.
Brigadier General Ali Jahanshahi, commander of the Army’s Ground Force, said more than 50 combat and support units were deployed along Iran’s borders at the start of the second U.S.-Israeli war, from the northwest to the southwest and from the east to the southeast, including the Makran coast.
“The extensive deployment of units along the border, major logistical movements, the implementation of passive defense measures, and the Iranian Army’s operational capabilities and combat readiness have turned any thought of a ground invasion by the enemy into an unattainable dream,” Jahanshahi said.