Iran Threatens Red Sea Security After Potential US Strike on Kharg Island

Iran threatened to disrupt security in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea if the United States gains control of the Iranian island of Khark, according to a statement from an unnamed Iranian military source reported Saturday by multiple news outlets.

The warning, carried by Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, stated that any U.S. Military action against Khark would be met with a “surprising” Iranian response. The source further indicated that creating insecurity in other waterways, including Bab al-Mandeb and the Red Sea, was among the options available to the “axis of resistance,” as described by the source. “The situation will become much more complicated for the Americans than it is today,” the source reportedly said, according to Iran International.

The threat comes amid conflicting signals from Washington regarding Iran’s oil sector. The Iranian military source claimed the U.S. Had announced plans to lift oil sanctions on Iran for the first time since 1979, ostensibly to control global oil prices, while simultaneously considering an attack on Khark to address the global oil crisis.

The island of Khark is strategically significant, and the U.S. Has previously indicated its capability to accept control of the island “at any time,” according to reports. The Iranian source warned that an attack on Khark could temporarily disrupt oil production and lead to Iran “setting fire to all facilities in the region.”

The situation also unfolds as the U.S. Reportedly faces a “major predicament” regarding the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian oil facilities, according to the source. As of Saturday, no official statement had been released by the White House or the Pentagon responding to the Iranian threat.