Iran to announce restricted Gulf zone, new Hormuz shipping maps

Iran has said it will announce a new restricted zone in the Gulf in the coming days, alongside maps for a revised shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz. The announcement follows a weekend of fresh tit-for-tat strikes between the US and Iran that pushed oil prices higher on Monday.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said the restricted zone would begin where the US blockade of Iran starts and extend into Gulf waters. He added that any ship entering the zone would be added to a sanctions list. Rezaei also said maps for a new international corridor, lying in Iranian and Omani waters and managed by Iran, had been agreed and would be signed shortly.

"We will only commit to the Strait of Hormuz being open when they (the Americans) stop the sabotage, threats and attacks on Iran," Rezaei said in an interview with state TV.

The conflict, now six months old, appears deadlocked. A preliminary ceasefire agreed in June has collapsed, with little progress in diplomatic efforts. After a lull in August, strikes have resumed. US Central Command said it struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, including one near Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export hub, following attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on US warships.

Shipping data shows an average of 10 commodity ships per day transited the Strait in the past 10 days, the lowest since May. Brent crude rose 0.8% to above $97 a barrel.

Economic pressure mounts

Iranian officials acknowledge the strain of US sanctions. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the US should understand that the "rules of the game have changed," warning of faster and heavier responses to any attack. He also stressed that Iran's main battle now involved production and livelihoods, citing currency fluctuations, inflation, and unemployment as major challenges.

Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh rejected the idea that sanctions would change Iran's course, saying the responsibility for reforming Iran's economy rests with its government and people, not the US Treasury.

Kharg Island under fire

Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said Kharg Island had been hit around 550 times in recent months but continued to operate. The island handled 90% of Iran's crude exports before the war. US Central Command said it had redirected 92 commercial vessels, disabled three, and boarded two to enforce its blockade.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said oil was still moving through the waterway, with transits averaging over 9 million barrels a day, and that access pipelines around the strait meant flows were at two-thirds or more of pre-conflict levels.