Iran rejects proposal; Strait of Hormuz once again in flames; Tankers hit PHOTO

The United States and Saudi Arabia are trying to pressure Oman into developing its "unrealistic plans" regarding the strategic waterway, the same official added.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said last night that Iran had proposed a temporary plan to Oman for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Under the proposal, one direction of maritime traffic would pass through Iranian waters, while part of the opposite route would also be located in Iranian waters.

Speaking on Iranian state television, he said Tehran had rejected an earlier Omani proposal for an equal division of transit routes, arguing that such an arrangement did not meet Iran's security requirements until long-term regional stability is achieved.

Gharibabadi warned that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed if Muscat rejects Iran's proposal, Reuters reported.

According to him, the traditional route through the middle of the strait is currently not in use due to the threat of mines, so ships have been redirected to the northern route along Iran and the southern route along Oman.

Three oil tankers hit

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced today that its naval forces had struck and disabled three oil tankers which, according to its claims, ignored repeated warnings and continued sailing along an unsafe and unauthorized route through the Strait of Hormuz.

According to the IRGC, the tankers were hit after failing to comply with instructions to leave the illegal passage, Mehr News reported.

No information has been released about the vessels' flags, their cargo, or the crew members on board.

The IRGC reiterated that the Strait of Hormuz is under Iran's full control and warned that, according to its statement, "illegal interventions and orders" issued by the U.S. military to ships operating in the area would not go unanswered.

The statement also said that the operation followed recent incidents in the waterway, while claiming that Iran had closed the Strait of Hormuz to all maritime traffic and that it would remain closed until, according to Tehran, U.S. military interference comes to an end.