Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is for all intents and purposes stopped after three oil tankers have been hit since the start of the operation against Iran. Risks to commercial shipping have surged in the past 24 hours, with more than 200 vessels including oil and liquefied gas tankers, dropping anchor around the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters, shipping data showed on Sunday, reported Reuters. Iran has said it has closed navigation through the critical waterway.
“The U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran dramatically increases the security risk to ships operating in the Persian Gulf and adjacent waters,” said Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer at shipping association BIMCO. “Ships with business connections to U.S. or Israeli interests are more likely to be targeted, but other ships may also be targeted deliberately or in error.”
AT least 150 tankers, including crude and LNG vessels, dropped anchor in open Gulf waters beyond the Strait of Hormuz and dozens more were stationary on the other side of the chokepoint, shipping data showed on Sunday, after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran plunged the region into turmoil. The tankers were clustered in open waters off the coasts of major Gulf oil producers, including Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Qatar, according to Reuters estimates based on ship-tracking data from the MarineTraffic platform.
