Six months of US-Iran war leaves Hormuz traffic severely depressed

The number of commercial vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz remains in single digit as the Middle East conflict enters its sixth month.  

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Another tanker came under an air assault whilst transiting inbound in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency reported.

The vessel was around 12 nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman, when an unknown projectile hit it, the UKMTO reported.

As of Saturday, a meagre seven vessels attempted to transit the strait – five inbound, two outbound – market intelligence provider Windward reported.

To date, at least 70 attacks on international shipping have been verified by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), with 19 seafarers killed.

As of Sunday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it has redirected 83 commercial vessels, disabled three, and boarded two to prevent ships from entering or departing Iranian ports, it said on social media platform X.

“Several Iran-flagged tankers in the group are being used as floating storage for heavy crude and high-sulphur fuel oil,” Windward said.

While some ships and their crews have been able to leave the Persian Gulf, at least 400 merchant vessels have not been able to depart safely since the conflict began, the IMO’s secretary general Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement.

A large concentration of stationary dark vessels is present between Larak Island and Qeshm, Iran, Windward reported.

“The deterioration of maritime security around the globe – from the Black Sea to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden – is detrimental to us all,” Dominguez said.

By Aparupa Mazumder

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