[Anchor]
The United States resumed its maritime blockade of Iran today (July 15) and continued additional airstrikes. In response, Iran has threatened to block energy exports from Middle Eastern countries, targeting the U.S.
Reporter Yu Deok-gi has the story.
[Reporter]
At 5:00 a.m. today (KST), the U.S. military announced that it had resumed a maritime blockade on vessels traveling to and from Iranian ports and coastal regions.
This marks the resumption of the counter-blockade against Iran, which had been lifted 26 days ago following the signing of a previous memorandum of understanding.
Airstrikes targeting missile and drone bases, as well as coastal defense systems, in the Strait of Hormuz and along Iran's western coast have also continued for the fourth consecutive day.
President Trump has further escalated the level of threats.
[Donald Trump / U.S. President (Fox News 'Trey Yingst')] : "We will destroy all of their (Iran's) power plants. If they don't come to the negotiating table, we will destroy every bridge in Iran."
Iran immediately retaliated with missiles and drones against U.S. military bases in the region, including those in Bahrain and Kuwait.
Tehran also warned that it would completely control energy exports from neighboring countries through the Strait of Hormuz. Analysis suggests that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is targeting shuttle tankers that transport an average of 3.5 million barrels of Middle Eastern crude oil per day from inside the Persian Gulf to nearby ports outside the Strait of Hormuz under U.S. naval escort.
The two oil tankers struck by Iran on July 14 (local time) were also identified as shuttle tankers, reportedly belonging to a fleet controlled by South Korea's Sinokor Merchant Marine.
[Iranian State TV Anchor] : "The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran emphasized that passing through routes created in cooperation with the aggressor enemy will only lead to regret, damage, delays in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and a global energy crisis."
Furthermore, Iran threatened the possibility of closing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea using the Houthi rebels, a pro-Iranian group in Yemen, claiming that other energy export routes could also be shut down.
Meanwhile, it has been determined that Iran has organized a "shadow fleet" that sails under false flags and turns off location tracking devices in an attempt to bypass the U.S. blockade and export its own crude oil.
(Video Editing: Lee Seung-hee, Design: Choi Jae-young, Jeon Yu-geun)
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