Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has threatened to close additional regional energy export routes following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the reimposition of a US naval blockade on Iranian ports.
In a statement carried by Iran’s state news agency IRNA on Wednesday, the IRGC warned that regional energy exports would either be “shared by all, or denied to all”, signalling the possibility of broader disruption to global energy supplies.
Analysts believe Iran could seek support from its Houthi allies in Yemen to disrupt shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic waterway linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The route is a key corridor for Saudi oil exports and a significant share of global maritime trade.
A senior Houthi official reportedly warned earlier this week that the group was prepared to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait if Saudi Arabia continued military operations in Yemen. The official claimed such a move could drive global oil prices as high as US$200 per barrel.
The warning followed renewed hostilities between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia after the Iran-backed group accused the kingdom of bombing an airport under its control. The Houthis responded by launching missiles towards Saudi Arabia, ending a four-year ceasefire between the two sides.
The Houthis have previously demonstrated their ability to disrupt international shipping. Following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict in 2023, the group launched attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, saying they were targeting ships linked to Israel.
The latest threats came a day after the US military announced a fresh wave of strikes aimed at degrading Iran’s military capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the United States, Iran attacked seven commercial vessels over the past week, leaving nearly a dozen crew members dead, injured or missing.
US Central Command said its forces carried out a seven-hour operation targeting dozens of Iranian military sites near the Strait of Hormuz and along the country’s coastline.
The IRGC declared that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until what it described as “the end of America’s evils”. Before the conflict escalated earlier this year, roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas shipments passed through the strategic waterway each day.
The Guards also claimed responsibility for attacks on facilities it described as supporting the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, as well as a logistics site in Kuwait’s Mina Abdullah and a US military base at Azraq in Jordan.
Kuwait’s state news agency confirmed that firefighters had brought a blaze under control at a site targeted during the Iranian attacks, although it did not confirm whether it was the same location identified by the IRGC.
Jordan’s military also reported intercepting and destroying three ballistic missiles that entered its airspace from Iran early on Wednesday.
The renewed fighting follows the collapse of a fragile ceasefire reached in June after months of conflict that claimed thousands of lives.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump warned that Washington could target Iranian power plants, bridges and energy infrastructure unless Tehran returns to negotiations over its nuclear programme.
Speaking to Fox News, Trump said the United States would continue increasing military pressure while urging Iran to agree to a new deal.
Oil prices climbed again on Wednesday after posting strong gains a day earlier, with Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate reaching their highest levels in more than a month as investors reacted to growing concerns over disruptions to global energy supplies.
