Iran tightens grip on Strait of Hormuz waters under new IRGC rules

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced "new rules" governing waters near its southern coastline, saying it intends to strengthen control over key maritime routes in the Arabian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, as reported by Iranian state media Press TV.

In a statement released by the IRGC Navy command, the force said it would exert "control over nearly 2,000km of Iran's coastline" stretching across the Arabian Gulf and the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.

The statement said the measures are aimed at turning the waters into "a source of pride and power for the dear people of Iran, and a source of security and prosperity for the region".

According to Press TV, the statement came a day after Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei issued the directive, asserting that foreigners with "ominous" plots targeting the Arabian Gulf had no place in the region "except at the bottom of its waters".

US President Donald Trump has sharply criticised opponents of his administration’s military campaign in Iran, describing claims that the United States is not winning the conflict as “treasonous”. Speaking at a rally in Florida, Trump pushed back against critics, particularly from the Democratic Party, who have questioned the effectiveness and direction of the war.

He argued that Iran’s military capabilities had been severely weakened, claiming the country no longer has a functioning navy, air force or strong defence systems. Trump also suggested that Iran’s leadership had been significantly disrupted during the conflict.

The president defended the military campaign as necessary to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, warning that failure to act could have posed a serious threat to Israel, the wider Middle East and even Europe. He credited US operations, including the use of advanced bombers, with halting Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

At the same time, Trump indicated that he remains cautious about discussing operational details before objectives are fully achieved. He compared the current campaign to previous US military actions, which he described as highly successful.

Despite his strong rhetoric, Trump acknowledged that negotiations with Iran have not progressed as hoped. He said the United States is not satisfied with the current proposals on the table and stressed that Washington would not rush to end the conflict prematurely.

Trump made clear that while he prefers a lasting solution, the US is prepared to continue its approach until it secures what he described as the “right outcome”.

The US blockade in the Gulf of Oman and surrounding maritime routes has been claimed to have cost Iran nearly $4.8 billion in oil revenue, significantly tightening financial pressure on Tehran, according to a report by Axios citing Pentagon estimates.

The Department of War assessment suggests Iran has been denied close to $5 billion in oil earnings due to disruptions linked to US enforcement operations in the region, which officials say are targeting sanctioned maritime trade and energy exports.

Highlighting the report, Sean Parnell, speaking in his capacity as Assistant to the Secretary of War for Public Affairs and Chief Pentagon Spokesman, quoted Acting Pentagon Press Secretary Joel Valdez, who said the US operation is intended to maintain sustained economic pressure on Tehran.

In a post on X, Parnell cited Valdez, who said, "The United States' blockade in the Strait of Hormuz is operating with full force and delivering the decisive impact we intended." Valdez added, "We are inflicting a devastating blow to the Iranian regime's ability to fund terrorism and regional destabilisation. Our Armed Forces in the region will continue to maintain this unrelenting pressure."

The United States said it had approved a $4 billion sale of Patriot missiles to Gulf ally Qatar, as well as the sale of precision weapons systems to Israel for nearly $1 billion.

Both sales were deemed to support US "foreign policy and national security" objectives, the State Department said in a series of notices to Congress, amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Trump told top US lawmakers that hostilities in Iran had ended, after coming under pressure from Congress to seek authorization for the conflict as it headed into its third month.

"There has been no exchange of fire between United States Forces and Iran since April 7, 2026. The hostilities that began on February 28, 2026, have terminated," he wrote in letters to House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate president pro tempore Chuck Grassley.

The USS Gerald R. Ford left the Middle East after taking part in operations against Iran, a US official said.

Two other aircraft carriers - the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS George H.W. Bush - are among 20 US ships still in the region.

The Pentagon said US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the withdrawal of about 5,000 troops from Germany within the next year.

The announcement came after President Donald Trump threatened this week to remove troops from NATO ally Germany amid a row with its chancellor, Friedrich Merz, over the US-Israeli war against Iran.

Lebanon's health ministry said 13 people were killed Friday in Israeli strikes on the country's south, including in a town where Israel's army had issued an evacuation order despite a ceasefire.

The strikes in Habboush - where the evacuation warning was issued - killed eight people and wounded 21.

Other strikes in Zrariyeh killed four people and wounded four more, the ministry said.

It also reported a strike in Ain Baal near the coastal city of Tyre killed one person and wounded seven others.

Fourteen soldiers were killed on Friday during operations to defuse unexploded ordnance in Iran's northwestern Zanjan province, local media reported.

"Today, during one of these missions, 14 of these dedicated forces were martyred and 2 were injured," Fars news agency reported, citing the Revolutionary Guards.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei urged his people to wage economic battle and "disappoint" its enemies, as the war with the United States and Israel and years of sanctions take a toll.

In a written statement, Khamenei went on to call for "prioritising the consumption of domestically manufactured goods", and said "the owners of damaged businesses should avoid, as much as possible, layoffs and separation of their workforce".

Trump said he was unhappy with Iran's new proposal for peace talks, which Iran's state news agency IRNA said was delivered via mediator Pakistan.

"At this moment, I'm not satisfied with what they're offering," he told reporters. "They're asking for things that I can't agree to."

Details of the proposal were not yet public.

The US Treasury Department slapped new sanctions on three Iranian foreign currency exchange firms to try to stem the flow of Tehran's "financial lifelines".

The UN refugee agency said the war had sent freight rates soaring for delivering aid to refugees in the Middle East and Africa.

Costs have shot up nearly 18 per cent as shipments have had to be rerouted because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and port congestion, UNHCR said, sparking delivery delays.

Iran's judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said Tehran was open to talks with the United States but would not accept what he called policy "imposition" under threats.

"The Islamic Republic has never shied away from negotiations... but we certainly do not accept imposition," Ejei said in a video carried by the judiciary's Mizan Online website.

Day 63: Trump says 'not satisfied' with new Iran proposal

Day 62: Iran's supreme leader says, 'US suffered disgraceful defeat'

Day 61: Iran's Ghalibaf mocks Trump's blockade

Day 60: Blockade: US Marines board ship near Hormuz

Day 59: Iran blames US for failure of talks