Iran says 'waiting' for US to escort ships through Strait of Hormuz

Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Saturday said that they are "waiting" for the US to escort ships out of the Strait of Hormuz, the key channel for trade that has been choked off due to escalating tensions in the region.

"We are waiting for their presence," said Guards spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini, after the US energy secretary announced the Navy was preparing to escort ships through the strait "as soon as it's reasonable to do it".

"We recommend that before making any decision, the Americans remember the fire of the American supertanker Bridgeton in 1987 and the oil tankers that were recently targeted," Naini said, according to Fars news agency.

On Friday, the US energy secretary said that the country's Navy was preparing to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz "as soon as it's reasonable to do it."

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Traffic goes down in Strait of Hormuz

Only nine oil tankers, cargo and container ships, some of which at times concealed their position, have been recorded crossing the Strait of Hormuz since Monday, according to MarineTraffic data analysed by AFP.

After three ships were attacked on Sunday, at least three tankers and a vessel carrying gas have crossed this chokepoint, a key shipping lane virtually shut by the war in the Middle East.

Nearly 20 percent of the world's crude oil and about 20 percent of liquefied natural gas (LNG) usually transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran war update

The US-Iran war officially marked a week on Saturday with fresh strikes across West Asia. Iran launched missiles towards Israel, with Tel Aviv saying that its military is responding to the barrage.

Meanwhile, explosions were heard in Dubai and Bahrain's capital, Manama. "Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place," Bahrain's interior ministry posted on X.

Iran's army has said its navy had launched a wave of drone attacks targeting Israel as well as US bases in the UAE and Kuwait, as the regional war raged into its second week.

"The Iranian Navy targeted American bases and occupied territories with a massive wave of drone attacks," the army said in a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency.