Iran's army begins drill near the strategic Strait of Hormuz

Iran's army began an annual three-day naval exercise near the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, state TV reported.

The report said units from the navy, air force and ground forces participated in the maneuver in the Gulf of Oman. It said Iranian submarines and drones would be used during the exercise.

Adm Habibollah Sayyari, the commander of the annual maneuver dubbed as Zolfaghar-99, said Wednesday that the war game was aimed at “improving readiness in confronting foreign threats and any possible invasion.”

The Iranian navy handles all operations in the Gulf of Oman on the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of all oil traded passes.

In August, the Iranian navy boarded and briefly detained a Liberian-flagged oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz.

In July, Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard fired a missile from a helicopter targeting a replica aircraft carrier in the strait, an exercise aimed at threatening the U.S. amid tensions between Tehran and Washington.

The area in 2018 saw a series of incidents targeting oil tankers