Iran's top military commander Maj. Gen. Hassan Firouzabadi played down an Iranian threat to close the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf on Saturday, saying Iran would only do so if it was tangibly threatened. "We do have a plan to close the Strait of Hormuz because the military command must have contingency plans for any scenario," Press TV quoted Firouzabadi as saying on Saturday. "A Shiite nation (Iran) acts reasonably and would not approve interruption of a waterway... Unless our interests are seriously threatened." Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz through which one fifth of the world's oil passes daily in response to Western embargoes on its crude oil. The comments made by Firouzabadi, the chairman of Iran's Joint Chiefs of Staff, came a week after the EU enforced a total oil embargo against Iran in efforts to dissuade Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons. A halt in crude oil imports from Iran is intended to increase pressure on the Islamic republic to stop enriching uranium to the 20 percent level, an issue at the center of an international dispute. Western powers fear material produced at that level well above the 3.5% enrichment needed for energy-producing reactors can be turned into weapons-grade material in a matter of months. Iran insists its reactors are only for energy and research. Despite the stiffening of sanctions against Iran's oil industry, the Wall Street Journal reported recently that the U.S. has eased sanctions against Iran by exempting 20 countries from participating in the oil boycott, including China and India. According to U.S. regulations, the U.S. government can agree to exempt a country for up to six months from enforcing the complete package of international sanctions on Iran if that country significantly reduces its import of Iranian crude oil. U.S. President Barack Obama reportedly cited that stipulation when he exempted India from applying sanctions to Iran, even though India had only reduced its import of Iranian oil by 11%. Japan was also said to have been granted an exemption after it reduced its imports by 25% a reduction that was not the result of sanctions, but of a business conflict with Iran. In preparation for making good on its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping, Iranian lawmakers have prepared a bill that would order the country's military to stop tankers headed to countries that have joined the oil ban. But Iran's parliament speaker, Ali Larijani, was quoted by Iranian media on Saturday as saying that the proposed bill has not yet been studied by parliament. Meanwhile, Iran's state TV charged Wednesday that the BBC hacked its website to change the results of a poll about Iran's nuclear program. The BBC denied the allegation. The British broadcaster's Farsi language service reported that the poll showed 63% of those who took part favored halting uranium enrichment in exchange for an end to Western economic sanctions. The TV report Wednesday said the actual figure was 24%, and the rest favored retaliation against the West with measures like closing the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement, the BBC said the claims were "both ludicrous and completely false, and the BBC Persian Service stands by its reporting." "There is a significant audience within Iran which depends on BBC Persian to provide impartial and trusted news, and we are confident they are familiar with the state media's tactics," it said. The poll was taken off Iran TV's website on Tuesday.
