Iran Threatens Force Against Tankers Defying Its Hormuz Routes
Iran’s military command warned that tankers in the Strait of Hormuz must follow its approved routes or face “an immediate and forceful response”, hours after two days of technical talks in Doha ended without a breakthrough. Qatar says the next round will wait until Ayatollah Khamenei’s funeral rites conclude on 9 July. President Trump maintained that “the denuclearization of Iran is moving along well”, even as the threat unsettled Gulf markets.
The warning tests the fragile arrangement that reopened the strait: 60 days of toll-free passage, with Tehran still insisting it will control routes and eventually charge for transit — terms Washington and the Gulf states reject outright. Shipping has surged back, with 258 transits last week against 138 the week before, but Iran struck two commercial vessels as recently as late June. Oil trading below $72, close to pre-war levels, shows markets pricing the reopening as durable; tonight’s threat is aimed at exactly that assumption. Watch whether tankers comply with Iranian routing, and whether the next Doha round is upgraded from technical to envoy level.