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New Delhi: Tensions between Iran and the United States escalated sharply on Wednesday after Iran threatened to disrupt additional strategic maritime routes beyond the Strait of Hormuz, while US President Donald Trump ordered the renewal of a naval blockade on Iranian ports following fresh attacks on commercial shipping.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned that if Iranian ports remained under blockade, “regional energy exports are either shared by all, or denied to all,” signalling that Tehran could widen the conflict to other crucial sea lanes in the Middle East.

The statements from Iran indicate that it could increasingly rely on its Houthi allies in Yemen to threaten shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. The route is critical for Saudi oil exports and global maritime trade.

The Houthis have repeatedly targeted commercial vessels in the Red Sea since the start of the regional conflict and have warned they could intensify attacks if military operations against Yemen continue. A simultaneous disruption of both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb would place two of the world’s most important energy corridors at risk.

Trump ordered the renewed blockade after accusing Iran of attacking commercial ships despite earlier diplomatic efforts. The United States also carried out fresh strikes on Iranian military targets near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting retaliatory missile attacks by Iran on US-linked targets in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.

Iran says dozens of civilians and military personnel have been killed in recent US strikes and insists the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until what it described as “the end of America’s evils.” Trump has warned of further military action targeting Iran’s energy infrastructure if hostilities continue.

The latest escalation has pushed global oil prices higher and raised fears of a broader regional conflict that could further disrupt international energy supplies and shipping.