The US warned shipping firms and financial entities that cooperation with Iran’s Strait Authority could trigger sanctions.
Iran accused the US of launching strikes near Bandar Abbas and threatened a “more decisive” retaliation.
Rising tensions around the Strait of Hormuz are intensifying fears of disruption to global energy supplies and maritime trade.
The United States on Thursday issued fresh warnings to shipping companies, financial institutions, and other entities, saying cooperation with Iran’s newly formed Persian Gulf Strait Authority could expose them to US sanctions.
The move comes as Washington intensifies pressure on Tehran over its control of the Strait of Hormuz.
1 May 2026
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“Anyone cooperating with the so-called Strait Authority may be providing support to and receiving services from the IRGC, which ultimately benefits from this attempted extortion, and may therefore be exposed to sanctions risk,” the US Treasury Department said in a statement.
The US has designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation.
Washington also accused the Persian Gulf Strait Authority of leading an Iranian initiative to collect what it described as “illegitimate” tolls from commercial tankers transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.
The strategic waterway carries nearly 20% of the world’s energy supplies and has been severely disrupted since the start of the Iran-US conflict, which is now entering its third month.
“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.
Iran-US Tensions Intensify
On Thursday, the IRGC claimed it targeted a US airbase following what it described as an early morning American attack near Bandar Abbas airport. The escalation has heightened concerns as negotiations between the two countries continue without any major breakthrough.
The IRGC warned that any further aggression would invite a more “decisive” response, adding that responsibility for the consequences would lie with the “aggressor.”
Iranian state media outlet Tasnim News Agency reported that the IRGC Navy fired at a US tanker that allegedly attempted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz after switching off its radar system.
According to a Reuters report citing sources, the US carried out overnight military strikes inside Iran targeting a site believed to pose a threat to American forces and commercial maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
US forces also intercepted and shot down multiple Iranian drones that were considered a similar threat, the report added.
