America besieges Iran by land with the “Iron Gate”

After months of imposing an ongoing naval blockade on Iran, the US military decided to form a task force to reinforce Washington's efforts to restrict Tehran's transfer of advanced weapons systems and other sanctioned materials across its land borders and the Caspian Sea.

The US Central Command (Centcom) announced that the task force will be called “Iron Gate,” and will be based in Tampa, Florida, and will coordinate its work with other government agencies. In addition to weapons transfers, the task force will also focus on dual-use items and illicit sources of income.

Admiral Brad Cooper, Commander of Central Command, said in a statement: “Enhancing Central Command’s cooperation with partners across US agencies will further limit Iran’s ability to finance terrorism, rebuild weapons factories, and rebuild its military capabilities.”

Centcom estimated that the naval blockade it imposed prevented Iran from exporting more than $25 billion worth of crude oil.

Meanwhile, the battle of wills between Washington and Tehran is escalating at the negotiating table, while the positions of both parties fluctuate between diplomatic efforts to contain the escalation and pressures to return to a final and decisive military confrontation.

Axios reported that US Vice President J.D. Vance is in almost daily contact with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman and Pakistani Army Chief of Staff Asim Munir to discuss negotiations with Iran.

US Central Command announced this evening (Saturday) that it disabled a ship flying the flag of the St. Kitts Islands after it ignored repeated warnings and attempted to leave the region after visiting an Iranian port.

American forces have been imposing a naval blockade on Iran for months.

This attack comes a day after the US army launched limited raids on Iran, targeting an air defense system.

The British Maritime Trade Operations Authority stated on Saturday that it had received a report of an incident between a cargo ship and military forces in the Gulf of Oman, about 18 nautical miles east of Khor Fakkan in the Emirates.

The authority added that it was not yet clear about the condition of the ship’s crew, the damage and the environmental impact.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard said on Saturday that it had lifted the restriction it imposed on itself by limiting the range of its ballistic missiles to two thousand kilometers.

The announcement indicates that Iran is seeking to develop missiles capable of reaching longer targets, with mounting fears of renewed all-out war.

Revolutionary Guard spokesman Hussein Mohebi was asked, in a press conference in Tehran, about the restriction on the range of missiles, and he said: “This restriction has been lifted for us.”

Mohebi did not say whether Iran possesses missiles with a range exceeding this limit. He merely said that it would demonstrate “these capabilities in practice,” instead of making statements.

His statement comes days after Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned that “any type and level of threat” from the United States or Israel will be met with a response “without geographical restrictions.”

There is no information available about Iran's possession of missiles with a range exceeding two thousand kilometers, according to the Associated Press. This range puts parts of Greece and the Balkans within range of Iranian missiles.

But American officials said that Iranian space program technologies could be adapted to build intercontinental ballistic missiles.