Iran to announce a new 'exclusion zone' near Strait of Hormuz as war continues

The new head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council said an "exclusion zone" will be announced outside the Strait of Hormuz aimed at vessels it believes are attempting to transit the waterway. Speaking to Iran's state broadcaster on Sunday, September 6, Mohsen Rezaei's said Tehran plans to announce an "exclusion zone" but provided few details. Just one day earlier, the US hit three Iranian oil tankers in response to Tehran launching ballistic missiles at American warships . Experts called the launches a dangerous escalation after Iran's previous attacks at sea targeted commercial shipping. The US and Iran have been at war since February 28, when joint US-Israeli strikes were carried out on several key Iranian site. Iran retaliated by striking US allies in the Middle East and closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global oil passed before the conflict. The US in turn implemented a blockade on Iranian ports in the strait. The new zone should be announced in the coming days and weeks. It "will begin from the line of the US naval blockade, extend toward the Strait of Hormuz, and from this side continue into the Persian Gulf," Rezaei said. "Any ship that enters this area with the intention of passing through the Strait of Hormuz and is identified will be placed on our sanctions list." It is not clear where Iran defines the location of the US blockade. The American military has said over 20 warships are supporting the blockade. As of Sunday, the blockade had redirected 92 commercial ships and disabled three. Also on Sunday, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that on average, nine million barrels of oil a day are getting through the strait. This should help to relieve pressure on energy prices. Wright told CNN that with oil also flowing through pipelines in the region, "we're probably two-thirds or more of pre-conflict flows." Meanwhile, Rezaei in his interview with state TV claimed that "every day we are selling one million, one and a half million (barrels), as if Iran's oil production and trade are continuing as usual."