Strait of Hormuz shut? Iran vows to fire on any ship trying to pass through it; US military says 'it is not closed'

This ⁠is Iran's most explicit warning since telling ships it was closing the ⁠export route after United States and Israeli strikes on the country

Iran has said that the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for the world’s oil supply, is closed and that it will fire on any ship trying to pass.

"The strait (of Hormuz) is closed. If anyone tries to pass, the heroes of the Revolutionary Guards and the regular navy will set those ships ablaze," Ebrahim Jabari, a senior ​adviser to the Guards commander-in-chief, ⁠said in remarks carried by state media on Monday.

This ⁠is Iran's most explicit warning since telling ships it was closing the ⁠export route on Saturday, a move that threatens to ‌choke a fifth of global ​oil flows and send crude prices sharply higher.

The closure was triggered by United States and Israeli strikes on Iran since February 28.

US ⁠Central Command, however, said ⁠the ‌Strait of ​Hormuz is not ‌closed ⁠despite statements by ‌Iranian officials, ‌according to a Reuters report that quoted Fox News on Monday.

The Central Command has not commented on the issue.

The strait is the world's most vital oil export route, which connects the biggest Gulf oil producers, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and the United Arab ⁠Emirates, with ‌the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.

About 20% of the world's daily oil consumption passes through the Strait of ⁠Hormuz, which is ⁠about 33 km wide at its narrowest point.

(With Reuters inputs)