Iran has warned it could target shipping in the Red Sea, a vital route for global oil and goods en route to the Suez Canal, if the United States launches a ground invasion, an unnamed Iranian military official told local media on Wednesday.
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/TheNigerialawyer-WhatsApp-Channel1.jpg")
The official, quoted by the Tasnim news agency, said: “If the enemy attempts a ground operation on Iranian islands or elsewhere on our territory, or seeks to impose costs on Iran through naval manoeuvres in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, we will open other fronts as a ‘surprise.’”
“The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is among the most strategic straits in the world, and Iran has both the will and capability to pose a fully credible threat against it,” he added.
The warning comes as former US President Donald Trump reportedly positions a 7,000-strong ground invasion force near Iran, after Tehran rejected a 15-point peace plan. Around 2,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division were ordered to the Middle East to join 4,500 Marines already en route, according to Pentagon sources.
The President is prepared to pull the trigger on a full-scale invasion if Tehran continues to rebuff his diplomatic overtures, according to members of his inner circle.
‘Trump has a hand open for a deal, and the other is a fist, waiting to punch you in the f***ing face,’ a Trump aide told Axios.
The 15-point plan, modeled on Trump’s Gaza deal, would require Iran to dismantle all nuclear and long-range missile capabilities, open the Strait of Hormuz, and abandon proxy terror groups.
But Iranian state TV on Wednesday said that the regime had rejected the ceasefire proposal. Instead, Tehran is demanding the closure of all US bases in the Gulf, reparations, and an end to Israeli military strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Tehran is also seeking to bring the strait – a chokepoint for roughly a fifth of the world’s oil – under its control, allowing it to charge transit fees on passing vessels, much like Egypt does with the Suez Canal.
Oil prices lurched widely, with Brent crude prices falling as low as $97 per barrel on Tuesday on news of the peace plan, before rising back to $102 on Wednesday.
A Trump official described Iran’s demands as ‘ridiculous’ and ‘unrealistic’, warning that reaching a deal is now more difficult than before the war began as the President prepares a potential ground invasion force.
US and Iranian diplomats have not spoken through direct contact and instead communicate via Middle Eastern intermediaries from Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan.
The President called for a one-month ceasefire on Tuesday during which the two sides could thrash out the negotiations on the 15-point peace plan.
The plan now stands in complete contrast to the demands being issued from Tehran.
Ceding control of the Strait of Hormuz remains a non-starter for Saudi Arabia as Riyadh urges Trump to stay in the fight.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has repeatedly urged Trump to finish the Islamic regime in calls over the last week, including the use of ground forces to seize Iran’s energy sites.
Iran remains wary of Trump’s envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, accusing them of ‘backstabbing’ Tehran in negotiations before the US and Israel launched strikes on February 28.
Iranian officials are pushing for Vice President JD Vance to lead the US negotiating team, believing he is sympathetic after privately expressing doubts about Operation Epic Fury.
Trump is facing intense pressure to end the conflict after the Iranian stranglehold on the narrow Strait of Hormuz sent global oil prices skyrocketing.
Trump announced a five-day halt to US strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure on Monday while urging Tehran to return to the negotiating table.
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammed-Baqer Qalibaf has emerged as the country’s de-facto leader and the preferred interlocutor for Trump officials.
Qalibaf has denied talks with Washington.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR LAWYERS: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE
Reimagine your practice with the power of AI “...this is the only Nigerian book I know of on the topic.” — Ohio Books Ltd
Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe, Esq., ACIArb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director, Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
Bonus:
Get a FREE eBook titled “How to Use the AI in Legalpedia and Law Pavilion” with every purchase.
How to Order: 📞 Call, Text, or WhatsApp: 08034917063 | 07055285878 📧 Email: benadigwe1@gmail.com 🌐 Website: www.benadigwe.com
Ebook Version: Access directly online at: https://selar.com/prv626
________________________________________________________________________ The Law And Practice Of Redundancy In Nigeria: A Practitioner’s Guide, Authored By A Labour & Employment Law Expert Bimbo Atilola
_______________________________________________________________________
