Iran seeks to tighten control over strait of Hormuz alongside Khamenei funeral

As crowds mourned Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intensified military control over the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which roughly one in five barrels of globally traded oil passes. According to The Guardian, the IRGC forced ships to turn back over the past two days while Tehran used passages from the Qur'an to send coded messages to delegations from neighboring Gulf states. Analysts suggest Khamenei's legacy may ultimately hinge on Iran's grip over this critical economic chokepoint.

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