Iran charges $2 million levy to sail through the Strait of Hormuz as Trump gives an ultimatum

Erbil, Kurdistan Region - Iran has created a new regime governing the strategic choke point in the Persian Gulf forcing ships to pay a two million dollars levy as President Donald Trump deploys Marine Expeditionary units and amphibious assault ships to the region. 

“For some ships which cross, for whatever reasons, Iran is charging them $2 million for the crossing," Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of the National Security Committee of the Iranian parliament, told state TV on Saturday. “In practice we have established a new regime governing the Strait of Hormuz after 47 years.”

Boroujerdi smirked and said that Iran somehow needed to fund the war it is waging against the US, Israel and its allies. Iranian officials have appeared on state TV in recent weeks and released statements proclaiming Tehran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz. 

Iran appears to have prepared for this scenario for years to deprive the world of vital energy supplies. “We are ready for a long war; we have made preparations for a long war. Do not be upset - the enemy has sustained heavy blows,” an officer from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Command, wearing a black mask, said on state TV. “We were not taken by surprise… in less than half an hour we managed to set the whole region on fire.”

Iran has said that it has practically shut the Strait, allowing only a limited number of ships that are not from hostile countries to pass through the narrow chokepoint. Around 3,000 vessels pass through the strait each month in peace time, carrying roughly 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies to international markets.

Oil prices have skyrocketed since February 28, when the US and Israel launched an extensive aerial bombing campaign across Iran, striking thousands of mostly military targets. Iran responded by closing the Strait, hitting around 21 ships, in the process according to an AFP tally published on March 18. 

President Trump on Saturday gave an ultimatum to Tehran to open the Strait. He threatened that the US “will hit and obliterate” their power plants - starting with the largest - if Tehran does not fully open the chokepoint within 48 hours. 

Iran's military spokesperson hit back within hours of Trump’s remarks, threatening to strike all the US energy infrastructure in the region. “If Iran's fuel and energy infrastructure is attacked by the enemy, “ the spokesperson for Khatam al-Anbiya Military Headquarters, which coordinates Iran’s military response, said. “All energy infrastructure, information technology facilities, and desalination plants belonging to the United States and the regimes in the region will be targeted.” 

Iranian officials, in statements to state TV, appear to believe they are winning the war and are prepared to escalate further, demanding war reparations from the US as a condition for ending the conflict.

The IRGC fired several barrages of ballistic missiles at Israel only on Sunday morning. The Iranian regular army (Artesh) also said that it fired its infamous Aresh-2 Kamikhazi drones at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv.