Iran renews threat to second key shipping lane as Trump warns Tehran to “smarten up soon”

Iran has killed at least 21 people and arrested more than 4,000 since the start of the Middle East war, the United Nations said, condemning the Islamic Republic’s “cruel and brutal treatment” of its own people.

Since US-Israeli strikes ended the war in late February, “at least nine people have been killed in connection with the January 2026 protests, 10 for alleged membership in opposition groups, and two for espionage,” the UN rights office said.

Alaaeddin Boroujerdi, Deputy Head of the National Security Committee, warned on Tuesday that Iran could retaliate against the US military blockade of its ports, which saw restrictions and the seizure of some ships. He said its forces “could easily respond to any such action by seizing one of the ships present in the region and, in effect, bring it to Iran’s shores.”

“We haven’t shown our new cards yet,” he said, renewing the threat to another strategic Middle East shipping lane.

“In fact, the importance of Bab el-Mandeb it may not be less than that of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, referring to another key energy supply point in the region that Tehran has previously threatened to ask its Houthi rebel backers in Yemen to block with attacks on commercial vessels.

“Yemen’s allies of Iran are waiting to block it and deliver another blow to America, its economy, and its illegal interests around the world,” Boroujerdi said.

Already, the Iranian military has seized two commercial ships it suspects of violating its borders in the Strait of Hormuz.

Boroujerdi dismissed the threats issued by President Trump as “endless” and “empty,” and said they would lead to “further damage to America’s reputation and a show of power in Iran.”

“We are still playing a big role,” said the member of Parliament.

Alaaeddin Boroujerdi, Deputy Head of the National Security Committee in Iran’s Parliament, said on Wednesday that Iran “will never give up control over the Strait of Hormuz.”

In remarks carried by Iranian media, Boroujerdi said Iran still had enough missiles to last several years of war, adding that the US and other Western countries “believed in the power of the Islamic Republic.”

He said the Speaker of the Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf is in charge of negotiations with the US, which have been conducted indirectly, through Pakistani mediators, since the first round of direct negotiations failed in early April.

Since then Iran has maintained an effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, an important shipping route for the world’s energy supply, allowing only a few ships to pass through the waterway jointly – and reportedly at great cost. The US, in response, imposed a military blockade on all Iranian ports and ships connected to the country.

Boroujerdi dismissed those US actions as ineffective, calling the ban “a passive and useless move” and said the US “will not dare to take action” against certain ships “because they belong to other countries, like China and others that the United States never deals with.”

The Pentagon said that, as of Tuesday, it had forced 39 ships trying to enter or leave Iranian ports to turn away since the blockade began.

President Trump warned Iran to “smarten up soon,” posting a short message on his Truth Social platform early Wednesday, along with an AI-generated photo of himself holding a gun in front of an explosion, with the caption: “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”

“Iran can’t get its act together. They don’t know how to sign a non-nuclear deal. They better smarten up soon!” said the president.

Mr. Trump expressed his hope that the continued blockade of the US military on Iranian ports and ships will bring enough economic pressure on the Islamic Republic to force it to agree to the deal. He has waived previous deadlines for Tehran to agree to a deal, however, and recently extended an ongoing deal to end the war permanently, saying it was to give the regime time to present a corresponding peace offer.

A proposal presented by Iran earlier this week, which sources told CBS News would have involved easing restrictions on transit through the Strait of Hormuz, has been quietly rejected by the Trump administration, possibly because it would have delayed talks on Iran’s nuclear program.

Mr. Trump has not issued a new deadline for Iran to make a deal, but the administration has left the threat of renewed strikes on the table. one of the most important is US military deployment to the Middle East in decades.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will face questions from lawmakers on Wednesday for the first time since the Trump administration launched a war against Iran, which Democrats oppose as a costly tactic without congressional approval.

The hearing before the House Armed Services Committee will discuss the proposed 2027 military budget, which would increase defense spending to $1.5 trillion. Hegseth and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, they are expected to emphasize the need for more drones, missile defense systems and warships.

Democrats are likely to focus on the ballooning costs of the Iran war, the massive withdrawal of critical US weapons and the school bombing that killed children. Some lawmakers may question how the military was prepared to fire on Iranian soldiers, some of whom infiltrated US defenses and killed or wounded American soldiers.

Early Tuesday White House dinnerPresident Trump said King Charles agrees with the US decision that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon.

“Charles agrees with me even more than I do. We will never allow the adversary to have a nuclear weapon. They know that, and they know it now with great power,” said Mr.

King and Queen Camilla of the US the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

At dinner, Mr. Trump too praised the nation’s relationship with the UKsaying that the two countries share “the spirit and soul of heroes.”

Shares advanced in Asia on Wednesday despite losses on Wall Street during the previous day’s trading. Oil prices were hit by uncertainty over the end of the war in Iran and after the United Arab Emirates said it would leave OPEC, hitting the oil powerhouse.

US futures retreated last Wednesday.

In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.8% to 6,690.90 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.5% to 26,050.90. The Shanghai Composite index traded 0.7% higher at 4,107.51. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.3%, to 8,687.00.

Taiwan’s Taiex fell 0.6%, while India’s Sensex gained 1.4%.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil for June delivery rose 1.1% to $112.47 early on Wednesday. Brent for July delivery also rose 1.1% to $105.50. Brent oil was at $70 per barrel before the war started in late February.

Benchmark US crude gained 1% to $100.94 a barrel.

Britain’s ambassador to the US, Sir Christian Turner, said in February, before the US and Israel began their joint war with Iran, that it seemed to him that “the only country” that had a special relationship with the US was “probably Israel.”

Turner said this to a group of British high school students visiting the US A recorded comment was obtained by the Financial Times and reported by the newspaper on Tuesday.

Turner said he does not like the term “special relationship,” which was coined by Prime Minister Winston Churchill after World War II, to describe the US-UK bond, calling it “quite nostalgic” and “looking back,” according to the FT.

“I think there’s probably one country that has a special relationship with the United States,” he said, “and that’s probably Israel.”

CBS News did not review the audio of his remarks, but the British government did not deny their authenticity.

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