Iran will reciprocate if its ships are seized, the legal adviser to Iran’s President told state media on Thursday, in response to a statement by the United States Department of Justice.

This month, the Department of Justice issued a statement announcing the seizure of more than 500,000 barrels of Iranian fuel to clamp down on the “Revolutionary Guards’ financing network”.

“If an Iranian ship is seized, we will reciprocate and the legal way is not closed in this regard,” legal adviser Mohammad Dehghan said, adding that he was not able to confirm whether U.S. authorities had seized an Iranian vessel.

Court orders by Iran’s judicial system have often been grounds for the seizure of foreign tankers by the Revolutionary Guards.

Since late last year, global shipping has been disrupted in the Red Sea as Iran-aligned Houthi fighters in Yemen have targeted ships in support of the Palestinian Hamas group in its conflict with Israel.

Source: Reuters reported by Dubai Newsroom and edited by Kim Coghill and Gerry Doyle