The US military has announced the creation of a new task force which will be dedicated to disrupting land-based supply routes to Iran.
The Task Force Iron Gate is being set up to reinforce Washington’s ongoing sea blockade of the Islamic Republic’s ports, the commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), Admiral Brad Cooper, said in a statement on Saturday.
Ending the naval blockade is among Tehran’s key demands for settling the conflict with the US and allowing the resumption of shipping via the Strait of Hormuz, which normally accounts for around 20% of global crude trade.
The task force, which will be based in Tampa, Florida and staffed with some 20 civilian and military personnel, will focus on “preventing the movement of advanced weapons systems, dual-use technologies, sanctioned materials, and illegal revenue streams across Iran’s land borders and the Caspian Sea.” It will operate in coordination with other US government agencies, CENTCOM said.
Reuters reported earlier that its investigation has established that Tehran had been successful in evading both the US naval blockade and the Western sanctions, importing at least $2 billion in hardware, explosives and heavy-duty trucks since the start of the year. According to the agency, the deliveries allegedly arrived by cargo ship across the Caspian Sea from Russia, by truck from Central Asia, and by aircraft from China.
Moscow has previously denied claims that it is supplying weapons to the Islamic Republic, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying that it’s “awkward to even hear about this.” The Iranian General Staff also stressed that “any commentary… on the purchase of equipment and weaponry from other countries lacks credibility.”
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei at the Kremlin. Bilateral cooperation and the security situation in the Middle East were discussed during the meeting, according to Moscow.
Rezaei’s visit to Russia came amid mounting concerns that large-scale hostilities between the US and Iran could resume following Tuesday’s US midterm election, in which the Democrats seized control of both chambers of Congress from the Republicans. US Vice President J.D. Vance attributed his party’s crushing election defeat to the conflict with Tehran and the resulting spike in energy prices.
On Saturday, US President Donald Trump confirmed “minor strikes” against Iranian air defense systems on Qeshm Island in the Start of Hormuz, while also claiming that “a lot of progress” was made in Qatar-mediated talks between Washington and Tehran.
The same day, CENTCOM said that it had “disabled” a commercial vessel in the Gulf Of Oman that had “attempted to violate the naval blockade.”
CENTCOM forces disabled a commercial vessel in the Gulf of Oman, Nov. 7, after the ship’s civilian crew ignored repeated warnings and attempted to violate the naval blockade against Iran multiple times. A U.S. military aircraft fired precision munitions at the stern of St. Kitts-flagged M/V Huda, disabling the ship after CENTCOM forces directed the crew to abandon targeted spaces. The cargo vessel tried to depart regional waters after visiting an Iranian port. Read the full release online: https://t.co/5wW1LqN1oW
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy reported that two oil tankers struck mines near the Strait of Hormuz after trying to traverse the waterway via an “unsafe” route, not designated by Tehran.
Rezaei issued a warning to the Trump administration on Saturday, writing on X that “you lost the war and the election. Vance has conceded... Start a war, and you’ll face a devastating response.”
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