IRGC Navy Commander Challenges US Over Strait of Hormuz

The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has challenged the United States to "enter the field" if it wants to learn whether the Strait of Hormuz is open or closed. He declared that IRGC naval fighters, the armed forces and mobilized personnel stand in position, ready to deal with offenders. US Central Command (CENTCOM) replied that he "has no navy."

Arutz Sheva reported that the commander also asserted IRGC control over the strait and warned that US Navy warships approaching it would be sunk. CENTCOM dismissed those claims in a social media post on Tuesday:

"FACT: IRGC's navy commander has no navy. American forces and regional partners clearly control the Strait of Hormuz. Just yesterday U.S. forces assisted Gulf partners in shipping more than 19 million barrels of crude oil through the strait."

JNS, which identified the commander as Rear Adm. Ali Ozmaei, reported that the shipments CENTCOM cited passed through the strait on Monday.

On Saturday, CENTCOM announced that American forces had stopped a cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman. A US fighter jet hit the stern of the Panama-flagged Ocean Molica, also known as the Arika Sun, with a precision-guided munition. The ship lost propulsion, and no one on board was hurt. CENTCOM said the vessel had departed an Iranian port and that its crew had ignored repeated warnings.

Over three months of enforcement, CENTCOM says, US forces have disabled four commercial vessels, turned back 135 ships and destroyed 10 tankers tied to the IRGC's multibillion-dollar shadow shipping network.

As JFeed reported on Wednesday, two senior Iranian officials told Reuters that Tehran is extending its campaign against commercial shipping into the Gulf of Oman and farther afield. The IRGC Navy separately said that a container ship carrying more than 2,500 containers sank south of the strait after striking a naval mine.