Iran threatens ports in Mideast as U.S. military set to impose shipping blockade

The U.S. military was poised to begin a blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas on Monday, as President Donald Trump sought to ratchet up pressure on Iran in a move that risks driving oil prices even higher and reigniting the war. Iran responded by threatening all ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

“Security in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman is either for everyone or for NO ONE,” the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting reported Monday. “NO PORT in the region will be safe,” according to a statement from the Iranian military and the Revolutionary Guards.

U.S. Central Command announced that from 10 a.m. EDT, or 6:30 p.m. in Iran, the blockade would be enforced “against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas.” It said that would include all of Iran’s ports on the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. CENTCOM said it would still allow ships traveling between non-Iranian ports to transit the Strait of Hormuz, a step down from Trump’s earlier threat to blockade the vital waterway, where 20% of global oil transited before fighting began.

Read more at Associated Press