Iran · 01 September, 2026 · 3 min read
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf Says Iran Will Respond Militarily If U.S. Tightens Naval Blockade
Ghalibaf warned Tehran would respond militarily if the U.S. tightens its naval blockade. He called the blockade a military act under international law and said everyone will suffer.
41 outlets, one story, no spin found.
7 of 8 outlets skipped it: euronews Farsi reports humanitarian harm from the blockade.
The Jerusalem Post was read line by line by the Watchdog: 2.9. See the score →
41outlets compared
Blockade, Threats, and Strikes
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Tuesday that Iran would respond militarily if the Americans tighten the naval blockade, framing the move as a shift from economic war to military war.
“The economic war against us is not new, and the U.S. naval blockade means a military war”
In a television interview, Ghalibaf said, 'The economic war against us is not new, and the U.S. naval blockade means a military war,' and he added that Iran 'has not lost the war, not for a moment, and will not lose.'
The warning came as Washington said it targeted missile launch platforms carrying marine mines on Qeshm Island, and Tehran responded with missile strikes claiming to have targeted two military bases in Jordan.
Ghalibaf also reiterated that Iran has not relinquished and will not relinquish its control over the Strait of Hormuz, saying the Iranian armed forces fully control it and will not allow its opening.
CNN Arabic reported that Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned a U.S. strike on Hormuz Island and vowed to 'respond firmly,' citing an IRNA statement that the attack violated 'Iran's national sovereignty and territorial integrity.'
Escalation at Sea
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters warned the “terrorist” United States army that it would deliver “more severe and extensive” blows to American warships if Washington continued acts of aggression, including maintaining its naval blockade of Iran.
Lieutenant-Colonel Ebrahim Zolfaqari said the armed forces would respond more forcefully if the U.S. military continued its “acts of aggression,” creating insecurity and harassing Iranian ships, and he warned the Iranian armed forces would target US military vessels “more severely than before.”
Iran’s IRGC Navy said Saturday that it targeted three oil tankers traveling along an “unauthorized route” in the Strait of Hormuz and three US-linked vessels elsewhere in response to American attacks on Iranian tankers.
In the IRGC Navy statement carried by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, the force issued a “firm warning” telling vessels, “Do not be deceived by the terrorist US military, and refrain from any suspicious movement aimed at passing through unauthorized waterways; otherwise, you will be targeted,” and it tied the warning to the ongoing confrontation.
Kurdistan24 reported that the IRGC said its naval forces attacked six vessels in retaliation for U.S. strikes that disabled three Iranian oil tankers earlier in the day, raising the risk of further disruption to commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Humanitarian and Economic Fallout
Euronews Farsi said a reinstated U.S. naval blockade off Iran's southern coast has paralysed Iran’s trade, driving 70% inflation and pushing families into survival mode.
“driving 70% inflation and pushing families into survival mode”
The outlet reported that maritime enforcement resumed in mid-July after a brief one-month pause after the Islamabad Memorandum, and it said the blockade disrupted over 80% of Iran's heavy imports and non-oil exports.
Euronews Farsi described how stranded cargo and soaring freight rates hit logistics networks that rely on southern ports like Bandar Abbas, quoting Gisoo in Tehran saying, “Since the war began, maybe one out of ten cargo ships leaving China actually reaches Iran.”
The same series of interviews said maritime freight rates jumped from $3,000 to nearly $10,000 per container, while it described point-to-point food inflation surging to 128% and a nearly 40% drop in non-oil trade compared to pre-war levels.
In parallel, Euronews Farsi quoted Hamid, a 46-year-old footwear vendor in Tehran, saying, “The blockade’s impact is absolute. Critical medical supplies, like haemophilia treatments, have become virtually unobtainable,” and it linked the pressure to rising costs for ride-hailing services like Snapp.