Iran · updated 5h ago · 3 min read
Ali Mohammadi Warns Iran Will Strike U.S. Ships in Indian Ocean If War Returns
Iran warns it will strike U.S. ships and destroyers across Indian Ocean if war resumes. IRGC commanders say the Strait of Hormuz will be controlled by Iran and ships targeted.
Whether the central issue is US war legality or Hormuz control.
5 of 7 outlets skipped it: US rejection of Iran proposal to reopen Hormuz.
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Al-Manar TV Lebanon
“Enemies will not be allowed to use the Strait of Hormuz as a strategic logistical passage”Read the original ↗
Truthout
“vote down a resolution to end the ‘illegal’ war of choice launched against Iran by President Donald Trump”Read the original ↗
One side stresses Iranian control; others pivot to legal illegality of US war choices.
IRGC warns of strikes
Iran’s IRGC Navy deputy for political affairs Ali Mohammadi warned that “If another war breaks out, we will undoubtedly attack and strike their vessels and destroyers, even in the Indian Ocean,” speaking in Bandar Abbas on Saturday.
Mohammadi said the IRGC Navy was surveilling vessels in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman, and he challenged U.S. claims by saying, “If the United States claims to control the Strait of Hormuz, let it bring one of its warships into the area.”
Iran’s Army Commander Major General Amir Hatami said, “The war is not over, and we must still be prepared to deliver harsh strikes against the enemy,” while also warning that “Enemies will not be allowed to use the Strait of Hormuz as a strategic logistical passage.”
Iran’s warnings came as Press TV said Mohammadi’s remarks followed U.S. President Donald Trump rejecting a seven-day Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s statements also cited a recent IRGC Navy action in which a Togo-flagged oil tanker, Trend, was struck and brought to a halt after a fire broke out aboard the vessel as it attempted an illegal passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Diplomacy and competing claims
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on social media that “Our conditions are clear, and any move toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on these conditions being met,” and he added that “Only a negotiated solution can get them out of this deadlock.” Araghchi said mediators had not officially relayed a U.S. rejection of Iran’s proposal, and he said, “We are waiting for the mediators to convey the definitive views to us, and we will make a decision based on them.” The News Pakistan described Trump as rejecting Iran’s plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and halt fighting, and it quoted Trump saying, “They want to make a deal to open the Hormuz Strait immediately because they're losing so badly.”
Mehr News Agency reported that Iran’s Army Force for Coordination Affairs deputy Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari rejected U.S. claims about Hormuz, stressing the waterway is “definitely in our hands,” and he said, “the Strait of Hormuz is definitely in our hands.” Tensions around navigation and control also surfaced in Masrawy’s account of an Iranian naval official urging the United States to send a ship to the strait’s vicinity, framed as a response to Trump’s comments about the waterway.
What is at stake
Iran’s threats and diplomacy were framed against claims about U.S. control and the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz, with Press TV saying Mohammadi argued that claims about the passage of oil tankers through the Strait do not correspond to reality.
Masrawy said public tracking of the U.S. Navy as of September 21 showed five major American warships directly in the Indian Ocean, listing USS Mustin, USS McFaul, USS Milius, USS John Finn, and the cruiser USS Princeton.
Masrawy also said a much larger force was in the Arabian Sea, including the aircraft carriers USS George Washington and USS George H.W. Bush, and it described an amphibious group led by USS Boxer and units of Marines.
CBS News linked the wider stakes to oil markets and shipping risks, saying Brent crude was trading over $105 a barrel again Thursday and citing a commercial vessel struck Wednesday in the Strait of Hormuz that killed one crew member and required evacuation of more than 20 mariners, according to Oman’s navy.
The News Pakistan added that the U.S. imposed an economic blockade on Iran to pressure Tehran to stop Iranian attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, and it said the conflict had disrupted oil flows through the key waterway and taken a toll on the global economy.