An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps adviser says the few remaining, renegade transit routes in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil-and-gas shipping channel, will soon be closed.

Mohammadreza Naqdi, the adviser to the commander of the corps, the military wing of Iran's government, told the semi-official state news outlet Fars News Agency the "few routes," deemed illegal by Tehran, were created by blasting and damaging some of the rocky passages in the strategic waterway," according to Reuters. 

Naqdi also said the routes are being used by “small boats smuggling oil and transferring it to tankers.

“The Strait of Hormuz is closed, and the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran have full control over it. This situation will continue until Iran’s legitimate demands are met,” he reportedly also said.

Iran effectively controls the strait, which hugs one of its borders and has stopped ships from passage amid its roughly seven-month-long war with the U.S., which has resulted in a spike in energy prices around the world.