Hormuz traffic halts again as shots fired and Iran claims ‘strict control’
- Multiple ships damaged, including India-flagged tankers hit by gunfire
- Containership struck by an unidentified projectile off Oman, as owners pulled vessels back to holding positions
- US-Iran standoff escalates, with Iran accusing Washington of violating the ceasefire
- Wall Street Journal reports preparations to seize Iran-linked ships to increase economic pressure
Strait of Hormuz reclosed after Iranian gunboats fired on merchant vessels, halting traffic only hours after a brief reopening and amid Tehran’s claim of ‘strict control’ over the waterway
A BRIEF flurry of Hormuz Strait transits was brought to an abrupt end on Saturday after two ships were confronted by Iranian gunboats, shots fired and vessels returned to their previous positions.
Traffic was back to a standstill on Saturday evening after radio transmissions, heard by several owners with vessels in the area and confirmed as authentic by Lloyd’s List, warned the strait had gone back to “strict management and control by the [Iranian] armed forces”.
At least two Indian-flagged merchant ships, including the very large crude carrier Sanmar Herald (IMO: 9330563), were reportedly hit by gunfire as they attempted to transit the waterway.
A separate containership reported damage to containers after being hit by an “unknown projectile” off the coast of Oman. The strike caused damage to some containers but “no fires” were reported, UK Maritime Trade Operations said.
This reversal comes less than 24 hours after a brief reopening, with Iranian state media citing the failure of the US to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports as the reason for the renewed shutdown.
On Friday evening local time, Iran’s foreign minister said the strait was fully open, causing oil prices to plunge and tankers to rush to exit.
Shortly after, US President Donald Trump repeated it was open, but warned that an American blockade on Iranian shipping would remain.
Iran said that was unacceptable and, by Saturday, Hormuz was blocked once again.
While several ships made it through the strait before the latest incidents, the vast majority of owners with ships stuck in the Middle East Gulf were on Saturday returning their ships to previous positions.
Iran accused the US of violating the ceasefire through its naval blockade of Iran-linked vessels. Earlier its armed forces had said that they were reasserting “strict control” of the strait until the US allowed traffic into Iranian ports to resume.
In a short press conference, Donald Trump said the US would not allow “blackmail” but added that “very good conversations” with Iran were still “going on”.
The US military is preparing to board Iran-linked oil tankers and seize commercial ships in international waters in coming days, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed US officials.
The Trump administration seeks to increase economic pressure on Iran through the measure, forcing Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and make concessions related to its nuclear programme, the paper said.
