Photo Courtesy of US Navy. Photo by Mass Communication 2nd Class Nathan Schaeffer.
A committee in the Iranian parliament has created a plan to blockade the critical oil-shipping lane in the Strait of Hormuz in response to international sanctions, according to the Mehr News Agency. The partial blockade would prevent the passage through the Strait of tankers transporting oil to nations that have sanctioned Iran. An oil embargo against Iran from the European Union went into full effect this month.
The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway that allows ships to exit the Persian Gulf and reach destinations around the world. It is a significant location for Middle buy cheap valium from pakistan East oil transportation, and Iran’s closing of the Strait would therefore be considered an extreme step.
Iranian lawmaker Ebrahim Aqa-Mohammadi, speaking with the Mehr News Agency, said 100 parliamentarians had signed the plan. Mehr reported the proposal was a reaction to the EU oil sanctions and banking sanctions from the US. Both Western measures are an effort to pressure Iran over their illegal nuclear program.
Despite the rhetoric from the Iranian parliament, it is unlikely that Iran would actually put the blockade plan into effect in the current circumstances, as it could spark a war with the West.
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.thmideastupdate.com, July 2, 2012)