Shafaq News- Tehran

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Friday that vessels may transit the Strait of Hormuz, which carries around 20% of global oil supplies, only through routes designated by Tehran, according to Iranian state television.

Citing the IRGC Navy, the broadcaster reported that three foreign oil tankers attempted to pass through the waterway without authorization on Thursday but turned back after receiving warnings from Iranian forces.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi separately warned that safe navigation through the strait could not be guaranteed without coordination with Tehran.

Vessel-tracking data showed maritime traffic remained well below pre-war levels. Fewer ships transited the strait on Friday than earlier in the week, hours after a Taiwanese-operated vessel came under fire near the Omani side of the waterway, prompting the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to temporarily suspend its voluntary evacuation program for more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Gulf.

Tracking data from LSEG, MarineTraffic, and Kpler indicated that at least four oil tankers, including three very large crude carriers (VLCCs), entered the Gulf to load crude. Two additional supertankers also entered the strait to load Iranian oil, while another carrying about two million barrels departed via the Omani side.

Kpler recorded 13 tanker transits in both directions on Friday, down from 24 on Thursday and 27 on Wednesday. Before the conflict, the waterway handled an average of about 125 vessel movements per day. Separate figures from AXSMarine showed total traffic, including dry bulk carriers, reached 62 crossings on June 24, the highest daily level since the conflict began, but still only about 53% of the volume recorded on the same date last year.