Iran to announce exclusion zone near Strait of Hormuz amid rising US tensions

Sep 6, 2026

Iran has announced plans to establish a new restricted "exclusion zone" near the Strait of Hormuz, threatening to sanction any identified vessels transiting the area. The announcement by Supreme National Security Council head Mohsen Rezaei follows a sharp escalation in military hostilities, including U.S. airstrikes on three Iranian oil tankers and retaliatory Iranian missile attacks. While the U.S. maintains a 20-warship blockade to halt Iranian exports, Tehran is finalizing a bilateral shipping corridor agreement with Oman to bypass restrictions, a deal the Trump administration refuses to recognize.

Iran exclusion zone announcement

▪Mohsen Rezaei, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, announced on September 6, 2026, that Iran plans to establish a new restricted exclusion zone near the Strait of Hormuz.
▪Mohsen Rezaei stated that Iran will only commit to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open when the United States stops its sabotage, threats, and attacks on Iran.
▪The proposed Iranian exclusion zone will begin at the line of the United States naval blockade, extend toward the Strait of Hormuz, and continue into the Persian Gulf.
▪Iran plans to place any identified vessel that enters the newly designated restricted zone with the intention of passing through the Strait of Hormuz on an Iranian sanctions list.

US-Iran military escalation

▪Iran claimed on September 6, 2026, that it struck an unmanned United States military vessel attempting to enter the Strait of Hormuz, a claim the United States military rejected as a total lie.
▪United States forces struck three Iranian oil tankers, including one off Kharg Island, on September 5, 2026, in response to ballistic missile attacks on United States warships by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
▪Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf declared on September 6, 2026, that the era of proportionate responses has ended and threatened that any aggression against Iran would receive a faster, more intense response.
▪United States Central Command identified two of the struck Iranian vessels as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps crude oil carriers M/T Downy, off Kharg Island, and M/T Stark 1, near Jask.
▪The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed it targeted three oil tankers and three United States-affiliated ships on September 5, 2026, though United States Central Command did not confirm these retaliatory strikes.

Strait of Hormuz closure

▪United States Energy Secretary Chris Wright reported on September 6, 2026, that an average of 9 million barrels of oil per day continue to pass through the Strait of Hormuz under United States Navy escort.
▪Mohsen Rezaei claimed that Iran continues its normal oil trade, selling between 1 million and 1.5 million barrels of oil daily despite the ongoing conflict.
▪The Strait of Hormuz, a critical energy chokepoint carrying about one-fifth of global oil during peacetime, has been almost completely closed since the United States-Israel-Iran conflict began on February 28, 2026.

US naval blockade operations

▪The United States military has deployed more than 20 warships to support its naval blockade of Iranian ports, which began in April 2026.
▪As of September 6, 2026, the United States naval blockade had redirected 92 commercial vessels and disabled three in its efforts to prevent Iranian oil exports.

Iran-Oman shipping corridor agreement

▪Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei stated on September 7, 2026, that the final agreement with Oman will include a temporary safe route through the Strait of Hormuz.
▪Iran plans to release maps of a new shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz that lies in Iranian and Omani waters, which Mohsen Rezaei stated has been agreed upon with Oman.
▪The Trump administration has stated it will not recognize any bilateral agreement between Iran and Oman regarding the management or transit of the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil market impact

▪Renewed weekend military exchanges of fire between United States and Iranian forces pushed international benchmark Brent crude oil prices up to $93 per barrel, according to reports on September 7, 2026.
▪The military escalation in the Strait of Hormuz reduced regional shipping traffic to its lowest level since May 2026, according to reports on September 7, 2026.

Debatable claims

▪The United States should recognize the Iran-Oman agreement on the Strait of Hormuz
▪The United States should maintain its naval blockade of Iranian ports
▪Iran's proposed exclusion zone near the Strait of Hormuz is legally justified