Hardline Iranian newspaper calls for mass attacks on oil tankers

TEHRAN, Sept 13: Iran should respond to any attack on one of its oil tankers by targeting all accessible tankers in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and beyond, the hardline Kayhan newspaper has argued, calling for a strategy of overwhelming retaliation.

In an editorial titled “Tankers for a tanker,” the newspaper argued that responding to attacks on Iranian vessels on a one-for-one basis would not provide sufficient deterrence and called on Tehran to adopt a much broader retaliation policy.

According to the editorial, Iran should declare that if an Iranian tanker is attacked, all tankers within the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, as well as tankers outside the region within the reach of Iranian forces, could become targets.

Kayhan is a hardline Iranian newspaper published under the supervision of the representative of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The newspaper argued that disabling large numbers of tankers could create a shortage that would take years to resolve because replacement vessels cannot be built quickly.

It said that even if the Strait of Hormuz were subsequently reopened, a shortage of available tankers could prevent oil from reaching international markets at normal levels.

Kayhan warned that such disruption could trigger a major oil supply shortage and send prices sharply higher, potentially creating what it described as an “existential threat to the global economic order.”

The newspaper presented the proposal as a deterrence strategy rather than an attempt to widen the war, but argued that the threat would only be credible if Tehran demonstrated that it was prepared to carry it out.

The editorial comes amid a sharp escalation in attacks involving commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz. Recent incidents have included attacks on vessels in and around the waterway, while US forces have also targeted Iranian oil tankers as part of an increasingly direct maritime confrontation.

Iranian officials and military-linked outlets have separately threatened shipping in the region. An Iranian maritime warning has reportedly extended the threat to tanker crews at Kuwaiti and Bahraini berths, while Iran has also announced an expanded maritime “prohibited zone” beyond the Strait of Hormuz.

The Kayhan proposal, however, should be viewed as an editorial position rather than confirmation of a formal Iranian government order or policy, unless Tehran officially adopts the measure.