(MENAFN) A proposed bill to block the Strait of Hormuz was approved by over half the Iranian parliament, threatening to close the Gulf to oil tankers in retaliation against European oil embargo, Reuters reported.
Lawmaker Javad Karimi Qodoosi said that 150 out of the parliament's 290 members had firmed the bill, describing the strait as "the world's lock" to which Iran holds the key.
Qodoosi was cited by the Iranian Students' News Agency as saying that if the sanctions continue, the countries that have imposed sanctions have no right to cross the Strait of Hormuz without harm.
Qodoosi played down the heavy Western naval presence in the Gulf and surrounding area to impede any attempt to block the vital shipping route through which 40 percent of the world's seaborne oil exports passes.
The Western powers have imposed sanctions on Iran to force it to shut down its controversial nuclear programme, which Tehran insists it is for peaceful energy purposes.
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