Iran claims it blocked US, Israeli naval access to Sea of Oman

A senior Iranian naval commander has said Iranian forces prevented US and Israeli aircraft carrier strike groups and marine units from entering the Sea of Oman.

Iranian Navy commander Rear Admiral Shahram Irani made the remarks in a television interview aired on Friday, hours after Iran granted commercial vessels conditional access to the Strait of Hormuz following the ceasefire in Lebanon, News.Az reports, citing Iran’s English-language Press TV.

“To this day, we have not allowed enemy aircraft carrier strike groups and marines to enter the Sea of Oman,” Irani said.

He added that US and Israeli naval forces had attempted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz using covert and deceptive methods, believing they would not be detected by Iranian forces, but were thwarted.

The admiral also dismissed US President Donald Trump’s recent threats of a so-called “naval blockade” against Iran as ineffective.

“No one listens to Trump’s talk of a naval blockade – it is just words,” he said, adding: “Trump has imposed a naval blockade on his friends, not on us.”

Irani described the proposed blockade in the strategic waterway as an act of “banditry and piracy”.

According to Press TV, an investigation published on April 12 said a US attempt to send two destroyers through the Strait of Hormuz ended in failure.

Citing military-security sources, the report said the US Navy vessels came close to destruction after attempting a high-risk passage, adding that the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers were intercepted and forced to retreat by Iranian naval forces.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said on Friday that a “new order” had been established in the Strait of Hormuz, outlining stricter regulations for maritime traffic.

In a statement, the IRGC Navy commander said all commercial vessels would be required to transit through routes designated by Iran.

News.Az