Iran Parliament Advances Hormuz Security Bill

By Staff, Agencies

Iran's Parliament on Friday approved the principles of a bill aimed at securing the Strait of Hormuz and prohibiting the passage of equipment belonging to hostile states through the strategic waterway.

Valiollah Bayati, spokesperson for the Parliament's Committee on Internal Affairs and Councils, said the approved provisions include a ban on "the transit and transportation through Hormuz of equipment and supplies belonging to the United States, the Israeli entity, and hostile states."

The measure was approved after the parliamentary committee reviewed the proposed legislation concerning the security and development of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf.

The move comes as Iran continues to assert control over navigation through the strategic waterway.

Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said on Thursday that control over the Strait of Hormuz remains firmly in Iranian hands, rejecting US claims that maritime traffic through the waterway has returned to normal.

"Washington's claims that vessels are passing normally through the Strait of Hormuz are nothing but lies and fabrications," the headquarters' spokesperson said.

The statement said the rules governing passage through the strait have not changed and that Iran continues to determine the conditions under which vessels may transit.

The statements challenge Washington's portrayal of the waterway as operating normally and reinforce Tehran's position that US military presence and public declarations have not enabled the restoration of unrestricted navigation without Iranian approval.