Iran establishes official body to manage strategic Strait of Hormuz

On Monday, Iran's Supreme National Security Council revealed the formation of a new body to manage the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway that Tehran has effectively controlled since the outbreak of the military conflict with the United States and Israel. The Council published on the official "X" platform a publication called the "Persian Gulf Strait Authority" in which it confirmed that it would provide "immediate updates on the operations of the Strait of Hormuz and the latest developments." The naval force of the IRGC published the same statement through its official accounts. According to the English-language Iranian Press TV channel, the new authority aims to establish "a system for exercising sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz," as ships transiting the Strait received "regulations" via the e-mail allocated to the authority, without revealing clear details about its mechanisms of work. This vital waterway has seen an almost complete closure since 28 Last February, with the continuation of a fragile truce since April 8, which greatly affected global markets and gave Iran strategic influence in exchange for the US naval blockade on Iranian ports. It is noteworthy that the Strait of Hormuz is a global economic artery, through which, in peacetime, about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments pass, in addition to other basic commodities such as fertilizers, while the Iranian authorities recently confirmed the collection of the first revenues from fees imposed on this navigational route. In this context, the head of the National Security Committee in the Iranian Shura Council, Ibrahim Azizi, pointed out last Saturday that his country has "prepared a professional mechanism to manage traffic" through the strait, stressing that its details will be revealed soon.