Iran insists it controls Hormuz as rial hits record low and exports dry up

Iran's military said on Monday it retained full control over the Strait of Hormuz despite changes in US tactics, as the rial fell to record lows, the oil minister resigned and Washington claimed Tehran had not exported a single barrel of crude in September.

"All movements (in Hormuz) are under the control of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic," Brigadier General Aziz Jafari, commander of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Joint Air Defence Headquarters, said Monday.

Hours before Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad's resignation was announced, he said in a video released by Iranian media that revenue from oil already sold would be collected and the process would continue.

His departure was officially attributed to "family and personal matters," although speculation has mounted that exports have fallen to a level that no longer covers state financial needs.

"Iran did not load any crude oil onto tankers in September. The Trump administration is cutting off the Iranian regime's most vital source of revenue," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote on X on Thursday.

Pezeshkian had acknowledged in August that the blockade was disrupting exports. "We used to sell oil; now we cannot sell it," he said. The new acting oil minister pledged to maximise production and continue exports through new strategies.

Ship-tracking company Kpler recorded crude exports from the region excluding Iran at between 19.5 and 22.5 million barrels per day in the final week of September, above the pre-war regional average of 18 million barrels per day.

The euro broke through 300,000 tomans on Iran's informal market, while the US dollar hit a record 270,000 tomans — more than double its level at the start of this year, when it stood at around 135,000 tomans.

At the time of the 1979 Islamic revolution, the US dollar was worth approximately 7 tomans. The rial is Iran's official currency; one toman equals ten rials.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency reported at least one attack a day in the Strait of Hormuz or the Gulf of Aden since 2 October.

Major General Ali Abdollahi, chief of the armed forces general staff, warned international organisations and responded to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United Arab Emirates.

"If for any reason Israel once again commits a miscalculation and starts another war, the fury of the armed forces will shatter its hopes and dreams," he said. "Be aware that if a new war against Iran begins, its flames will engulf everyone."

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told foreign ambassadors in Tehran that the conflict had no military solution. "If our enemies once again choose the path of military confrontation, our response will be firmer than before," he said.

"Only negotiations founded on justice and fairness can offer a way to end this conflict." He said the Strait could be fully reopened and shipping restored within seven days if Tehran's conditions were met and hostile measures lifted.

Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Iran had received proposals from Washington through intermediaries but would not accept one-sided demands.

"The position of the Islamic Republic of Iran is completely clear and definitive, and until our seven conditions based on the Islamabad memorandum are met, the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened," Ghalibaf said.