A trifle vulnerable to concentrated torpedo and anti ship missile attacks? The IR Iran logic says that even a short halting of traffic through the Hormuz would be enough to send oil prices sky high - (the hope is up to $250pd) which would FORCE the world community to break sanctions in fear of total economic melt down The question is would they also launch an attack on Bahrein at the same time? As for Syria..the fear is that if their allies the Regime in Syria falls they would launch an all out take over of Lebanon via Hezbollah to maintain their presence in the region And the timing...? So much points to August 2012..So lets see!

Yes, you're right & I understand that Iran has some 10,000 to 14,000 anti-ship missiles of various ages and capabilities. Many presumably dug into tunnels in the cliffs overlooking the strait. More than that, forget mines you've got to expect that Iran is ready to sink their own ships to block the straight. Imagine the engineering nightmare you could create by sinking 10-20 super-tankers or cargo carriers at a key choke point in the strait. It's not that wide and it's not that deep. Granted the west is probably prepared for this but I'd be building pipelines to Israeli, Turkish, Omani or Yemeni port cities not wasting money on minesweeping practice.