Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has announced a maritime restricted area that will extend from the port of Chabahar into parts of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, sources indicated on 9 September 2026.
The announcement, made by the Revolutionary Guards and summarised by reports, said exact coordinates for the zone will be released at a later date by an IRGC spokesperson. No further operational details were provided in the report.
The notice identifies Chabahar as a point of origin for the restricted area and specifies that the zone will reach into neighbouring sea areas described by the IRGC as portions of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The report did not state when the restriction would begin or how long it would remain in effect.
The announcement leaves several practical questions unanswered for mariners and vessel operators, chiefly the absence of precise coordinates. The IRGC statement, as reported, committed to publishing those coordinates subsequently, but gave no timing for that disclosure.
reports did not report any immediate navigation warnings or maritime safety information issued alongside the IRGC announcement. The publication confined its account to the declaration and the promise of later coordinate publication.
Scope and timing
The IRGC described the restricted area as stretching from Chabahar into adjacent sea spaces but did not provide a boundary, depth, expiry or details of navigational exclusions. The lack of these particulars means the full spatial extent and legal or practical status of the restriction remain unclear.
Because coordinates are pending, charting agencies and maritime authorities have not been quoted as having reacted in the reports item. The absence of confirmed coordinates also prevents the preparation of specific routing guidance for merchant vessels.
Information still to come
According to the report, an IRGC spokesperson said the exact coordinates will be disclosed later. The announcement therefore sets out an expectation of subsequent, more detailed guidance from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, but the timing and format of that guidance were not stated.
Until such detail is released, commercial operators, insurers and port authorities face uncertainty over whether existing voyage plans will be affected. The reports item did not include information on whether Notices to Mariners or other formal navigational warnings would follow.
The report remains narrowly focused on the IRGC declaration and the commitment to publish coordinates at a later stage. No additional statements from Iranian civil maritime authorities, international organisations, or third-party maritime agencies were reported alongside the IRGC announcement.
The Maritime Gazette will continue to monitor official notices and navigational warnings for any publication of coordinates or formal guidance that could clarify the restricted area and its practical implications for international shipping.