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The continued “American maritime piracy and banditry” in the form of a “naval blockade” will soon be met with “practical and unprecedented military action,” a senior Iranian security source told Press TV on April 29.
The blockade was imposed by the U.S. amid the ceasefire in response to Iranian restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz — a checkpoint for around 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipment.
The unnamed source told Press TV that Iran’s armed forces – operating under the Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters as the war command – believe that “patience has limits and that a punishing response is necessary” if the U.S. keeps the blockade in place.
Furthermore, he emphasized that Iran has proven in recent imposed wars that the U.S. no longer faces a passive or predictable adversary.
The source also claimed the restraint shown by Iran so far has been intended to give diplomacy a chance, allowing the U.S. to “learn of and accept Iran’s conditions for ending the war permanently.”
This pause, he hastened to add, was meant to provide President Donald Trump an opportunity to “pull the U.S. out of the current quagmire it finds itself in.”
Nevertheless, “if American obstinacy and delusions continue and Iran’s conditions are rejected,” the official warned that the “enemy should soon expect a different kind of response to the ongoing naval blockade, which is akin to maritime banditry.”
“A continued American blockade and closure of the Strait of Hormuz might ultimately harm the U.S. more than Iran and that a decisive response is deemed necessary by the top military command to completely discredit even this remaining American option,” he added.
The sharply worded warning came just a day after The Wall Street Journal revealed that Trump had instructed aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran.
In recent meetings, Trump opted to continue squeezing Iran’s economy and oil exports by preventing shipping to and from its ports, the report said.
According to the U.S. Central Command, 39 vessels have been redirected away from Iranian ports since the beginning of the blockade.
Press TV’s latest report indicates that the Islamic Republic will not tolerate a long-term U.S. blockade, and it may even view a resumption of war as a lesser evil.
The source who spoke to the news channel didn’t clarify how exactly Iran’s armed forces could respond. One clear option would be to attack U.S. warships imposing the blockade. This could provoke an American response, but could also improve the Islamic Republic stance in any future talks with the Trump administration.
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