Amid a flare-up in the conflict between the United States and Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz, shipping through the critical waterway remains very limited.
Only 13 merchant ships were recorded transiting the Strait on Wednesday, according to data from maritime intelligence analysts at Kpler.
Eight left the Persian Gulf; five entered.
Only one vessel – a bulk carrier entering the Gulf – was reported to have used the southern route close to the Omani coast, which has been promoted by the US military as a safer passage.
Most vessels transiting Wednesday used a route close to the Iranian coast, according to Kpler. On Thursday, the MarineTraffic site showed two oil tankers leaving the Gulf close to Iran and another sailing close to the Omani coaat.
The volume of shipping is about one-tenth of the pre-war average, though some vessels are crossing without transponders that would show their location.
Iran has consistently warned that all shipping requires its permission to use the waterway. A military spokesman said Thursday that implementation of Iranian regulations was the only way to reopen the Strait, which it declared closed as the recent round of US strikes got underway.
After drone attacks on several ships close to the Strait in the last week, US forces said Thursday they had again struck Iran’s missile and drone capabilities as well as coastal surveillance facilities “to further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten innocent mariners crewing commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”
