Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned on Thursday that only Tehran-approved routes were valid for commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The warning was in response to a newly announced multinational evacuation corridor designed to reopen the waterway.
“Safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz is only possible via routes announced by the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the IRGC Navy said in a statement carried by Tasnim news agency. It said co-ordination with its forces was mandatory for all vessels transiting the strait.
The statement said ships must co-ordinate directly with the IRGC’s naval units and warned that “routes announced without co-ordination with Iran are unacceptable and completely dangerous”. It added that vessels operating outside what it described as Iranian-designated corridors would be acting in violation of official instructions.
“Co-ordination with the IRGC Navy is required for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and any violation will be dealt with,” the statement said.
The warning comes a day after Oman and the International Maritime Organisation said they were opening a temporary shipping corridor aimed at evacuating more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Gulf following months of regional conflict. A ceasefire has been in place since April 8.
Omani authorities said the corridor was established without transit fees and was being implemented in co-ordination with the IMO and regional stakeholders.
Maritime officials have begun contacting an estimated 600 vessels still trapped in the Gulf, instructing them to proceed to designated waiting areas in international waters before entering the strait in controlled, phased sequences.
Two temporary routes – one north and one south of the standard Traffic Separation Scheme – have been introduced to replace the central channel, which has been deemed unsafe due to wartime hazards, including reports of naval mines. The IMO has said the original shipping lane cannot currently be used safely.
Trump says fees 'unacceptable'
The Royal Navy of Oman described the system as a “gradual and controlled evacuation” designed to restore safe navigation through one of the world’s most sensitive maritime chokepoints, while maintaining order and reducing congestion.
Omani officials said on Wednesday that the corridor carries no transit fees and is intended to ensure continuity of global trade flows while reducing risks to stranded crews and commercial operators.
An IMO spokeswoman said the humanitarian dimension was central to the operation. “They're not military, they're not trained for these things. They're seafarers from India, the Philippines – it's been quite a challenge,” she told The National.
The IMO said the corridor was developed after months of negotiations involving Oman, Iran, the US and other regional stakeholders, and would only proceed once verified safety and security guarantees were in place.
Oman and Iran have also agreed to establish a joint working group to discuss the future management of navigation in the strait.
The IRGC statement directly complicates that framework, asserting unilateral control over transit routes at a time when international agencies are attempting to co-ordinate a multilateral evacuation plan.
In a joint statement issued on Tuesday, Oman and Iran suggested they would impose costs for services provided to ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that tolls on vessels sailing through the strait would be a red line issue for Washington in negotiations with Tehran for a durable peace.
Asked by a reporter if he would accept a final Iran deal if it includes any kind of fees for shipping, Mr Trump said: “No. It would be unacceptable for me”.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would tell Gulf allies at a meeting of foreign ministers in Bahrain on Thursday that his country does not support tolls or fees in the strait.
“I think the whole world will be against any mechanism that charges money to use an international waterway. It's that simple. That's not going to happen. When we mean open the strait, we mean open the strait,” he told reporters in Kuwait.
“I am certain that not only will every country in the Gulf region be supportive, probably with the exception of Iran, but all the GCC members will be supportive and the whole world will be supportive.”
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most critical energy corridors, carrying more than 20 per cent of global liquefied natural gas and crude oil under normal conditions, making any disruption to transit a major concern for global energy markets and shipping security.
