Despite many warships being destroyed, Iran is said to still maintain its disruptive capability in the Strait of Hormuz thanks to a special force called the "mosquito fleet".
Along the Persian Gulf coast, many Iranian warships were sunk after attacks by the US and Israel, but another force is still present silently. This is a "mosquito fleet", consisting of small, high-speed, flexible ships, belonging to the navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, operating separately from the regular navy.
These ships can reach speeds of over 115 mph and are designed to harass ships. Combined with missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles launched from ships or camouflage positions on shore, this force becomes a major threat to maritime operations through the Strait of Hormuz.
Mr. Saeid Golkar, an expert on the Revolutionary Guard and a professor of political science at the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga (USA), said that the navy of the Revolutionary Guard operates in a guerrilla-style at sea, focusing on asymmetric warfare. Instead of confronting directly with large warships, they use quick attack, quick retreat tactics to cause disruption.
During the conflict, at least 20 ships were attacked, according to the International Maritime Organization. The incidents are rarely claimed responsibility by Iran, but analysts believe that it is likely due to unmanned aerial vehicles launched from mobile land-based platforms, which are difficult to trace.
Iran once declared that it would keep the Strait of Hormuz closed until a ceasefire was reached in Lebanon. After information about the ceasefire, Iranian officials made different statements about the possibility of reopening this route. Some opinions suggest that the US blockade of Iranian ports makes it impossible to do so, while the Commander of the Revolutionary Guard Navy said the opening would be accompanied by military surveillance.
US President Donald Trump welcomed the initial signal of reopening the strait, saying that the situation has ended, but emphasized that US blockades of Iranian ports will remain until a peace agreement is reached. Mr. Dan Caine said that more than 90% of Iran's regular naval forces have been destroyed in the conflict.
