Tehran’s island ‘toll booth’ blocks reopening of Strait of Hormuz
8 April 2026
Featured in The Times
Iran and the US
Burcu Ozcelik, a Middle East expert at the Royal United Services Institute, a defence think thank, pointed out that Gulf states would “refuse to be held hostage to Iran’s control over the strait”. There could also be legal problems if countries are asked to pay the IRGC for safe passage when the EU and the US deem it a terrorist organisation.

