Iran has once again shut down the Strait of Hormuz, just one day after reopening the vital shipping lane. It comes as the U.S. Navy intercepted and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship Sunday in the Sea of Oman. Iran said the seizure violated the ceasefire reached earlier this month. Despite the escalation, President Trump announced a U.S. delegation is heading to Pakistan for a new round of peace talks, repeating his claim that a deal is “very close.” But Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Monday that Tehran has “no plans” to participate. Speaking to Fox News Sunday, President Trump warned, “If Iran does not sign this deal, the whole country is getting blown up.” This is Mohammad Reza Naqdi, a brigadier general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Mohammad Reza Naqdi: “Victory will certainly be ours. We hold the upper hand. Even if you look at the battlefield through ordinary calculations, victory is ours, and we have the advantage. They have already struck whatever they could. They did whatever they were able to do. They say they hit 33,000 targets. They keep inventing numbers for themselves. They say they sank all our forces. Well, if you sank all our naval forces, then why did you not dare come and reopen the strait?”