Iranian Leader Warns Neighbours Against Imposing Economic Measures Against Tehran
Trump has vowed to increase pressure on Iran through unprecedented economic warfare and greater international isolation.
- Iran’s new Supreme National Security Council secretary, Mohsen Rezaei, warned neighbours against joining US economic pressure, threatening “seismic” retaliation and targeting of oil routes.
- Egypt’s foreign minister spoke with Iran’s Abbas Araghchi about reviving US-Iran negotiations and discussed Iranian-Omani talks on the Strait of Hormuz.
- Iraq and Iran said some Iraqi oil tankers have been permitted to transit the Strait of Hormuz, though details remain scarce.
- An Israeli drone strike in Syria’s Beit Jin village wounded one person, with Damascus calling it a sovereignty violation and Israel citing a counter-terror operation.
- The mix of threats, limited facilitation and ongoing strikes highlights the delicate and volatile state of the wider Middle East.
Iran’s newly appointed head of its top security body has issued stark warnings to neighbouring countries against joining fresh US efforts to squeeze Tehran’s economy, even as Egypt tries to revive stalled Iran-US negotiations and Iraq says some of its oil tankers are being allowed through the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian help. The mixed signals come amid ongoing Israeli strikes in Syria and Gaza, underscoring how fragile the wider Middle East remains.
Iran’s new security chief threatens neighbours
Mohsen Rezaei, named this month as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council in a move widely seen as hardening Tehran’s stance, said in a televised interview on Saturday that Iran would treat any neighbour cooperating with Washington’s “economic war” as an enemy. “If (Trump) wants to do something, we will retaliate in a seismic manner,” Rezaei told state broadcaster IRIB. He warned that Iran would target alternative oil-shipping routes out of the Persian Gulf if regional states joined what he described as US-led efforts to isolate Iran economically. “Not a single drop of oil will leave the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” he added. Rezaei also said Iran would impose fees for passage through the strait, which Tehran has effectively controlled since late February, and vowed to bring “new capabilities” to what he called the next war.
Even as Iran’s rhetoric hardened, Egypt moved to keep diplomatic channels open. The Egyptian foreign ministry said its top diplomat, Badr Abdelatty, spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi about efforts to bring Tehran and Washington back to the negotiating table to settle the war. They also discussed ongoing Iranian-Omani talks over management of the Strait of Hormuz. Araghchi briefed Abdelatty on “Iran’s view of ongoing developments, the course of negotiations and their challenges,” the ministry said, without elaborating. The call follows earlier discussions between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in which Cairo reaffirmed support for diplomacy and regional de-escalation.
Iraq says Iran is facilitating some oil shipments
In a sign that Tehran is willing to make exceptions, the governments of Iraq and Iran said on Saturday that some ships carrying Iraqi oil have been permitted to transit the Strait of Hormuz. Iraqi President Nizar Amidi said there was “facilitation for some ships carrying Iraqi oil in the Strait of Hormuz,” adding that Iraq does not have a national carrier for transporting oil. Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency confirmed that a number of Iraqi oil tankers had been allowed through after repeated requests from Baghdad. It was not clear how many vessels were involved or what Iran might have received in return, but the move suggests Tehran is calibrating its pressure rather than imposing a total blockade.
Meanwhile, Israel continued its military operations beyond its borders. The Syrian state news agency SANA reported that an Israeli drone strike on a vehicle in the southwestern village of Beit Jin wounded one person. The Israeli military said it had targeted a “terrorist who advanced terror attacks in final stages of preparation,” without providing details. Separate Israeli strikes in Gaza also continued, part of a broader campaign that has kept regional tensions high.