Official media reports Iran launches new system to regulate shipping in Hormuz

Tehran (ANTARA) - Iran has launched a new system to control ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, as reported by the country’s official media on Tuesday (5/5), further prolonging the current maritime impasse involving blockades and threats of military action by the United States (US). According to the new rules, all ships planning to pass through the narrow waterway must obtain permission via email from Iranian authorities, revealed Press TV, the government-run Iranian media. Iran describes this initiative as a “sovereign governance system.” Ships are required to adjust their operations in accordance with this new system and obtain permission before entering the Strait of Hormuz, Press TV reported. The media portrayed the initiative as a “sovereign governance system” now in effect at that strategic narrow point. Iran has tightened its approach to the Strait of Hormuz since 28 February, when the country declared it would deny safe passage to ships associated with Israel and the US following joint attacks by the two nations on Iranian territory. Iran’s parliament is also considering legislation that would formalise restrictions on ships linked to Israel and the US and impose a tariff system on other ships deemed non-hostile. The claim comes amid rising tensions over the Strait of Hormuz. The US has also imposed restrictions affecting ships sailing to and from Iranian ports after post-arms embargo negotiations with Tehran in Islamabad on 11 and 12 April yielded no results. US President Donald Trump stated on Sunday (3/5) that the US would begin escorting ships out of the Strait of Hormuz from Monday (4/5) local time in what he called Project Freedom, which he described as a humanitarian step. In response, Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the country’s joint military command, warned in a statement broadcast by the official Iranian news agency IRNA that “any foreign armed forces, particularly the aggressive US military, will be attacked if they intend to approach and enter the Strait of Hormuz.”