Mohammad Reza Naqdi, an adviser to the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, that Iran would soon close routes through the Strait of Hormuz that it considers illegal, referring to a southern route near the coast of Oman.
Iran announces closure of routes in Strait of Hormuz
Naqdi said a limited number of routes had been created by blasting and removing sections of rocky passages in the strait, adding that small boats had used them to smuggle oil and transfer it to tankers. The Iranian official said: “The Strait of Hormuz is closed, and the Iranian armed forces have full control over it. This situation will continue until Iran’s legitimate demands are met.”
Naqdi’s remarks conflict with preliminary data from Kpler, a company specialising in tracking shipping movements, which showed that the seven-day moving average of crude oil exports from the region stood at 18.3 million barrels per day on 30 September 2026. Kpler data indicated that exported volumes exceeded pre-war levels during 14 days in September.
The estimates included Gulf oil transported through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, as well as cargoes leaving terminals and ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps rejects claims that seaborne crude flows through the strait have recovered with the assistance of the US Navy.
Vessel traffic declines despite higher oil flows
Another adviser to the Guard, Majid Mir Ahmadi, said that only about 10 vessels crossed the waterway each day, compared with an average of 125 vessels per day before the war began on 28 February 2026. Higher oil flows during September coincided with continuing security incidents and logistical restrictions in the waterway.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations authority recorded reports during the first days of October that tankers had been hit by unidentified projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, some of which caused fires or damage to engine rooms.
On 5 October, the authority said that a tanker heading into the strait had received an order from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to turn back, under threat of being targeted, 11 nautical miles north of Oman’s Khasab. It said the ship’s captain complied with the instructions and that the authorities were investigating the incident.
These developments are testing the sustainability of higher oil exports as threats to vessels, transit risks and operational restrictions continue in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.
