Hormuz shipping plunges with no oil cargoes crossing
Shafaq News- Washington
Ship movements through the Strait of Hormuz nearly came to a halt, Reuters reported on Friday, explaining that nine vessels transited the waterway on Thursday, up from five on Wednesday, but still below the August average of 12 vessels.
Kpler recorded only two vessels crossing the strait, while a third tanker was heading into the Gulf through the waterway; none of them were carrying oil.
The sharp decline in traffic followed attacks on two more vessels in the Strait, while Washington warned it could maintain the naval blockade indefinitely.
Since Washington resumed its naval blockade of Iran on July 14, US forces have rerouted 62 commercial vessels, disabled three, and boarded two others to verify compliance, Central Command (CENTCOM) stated.
A U.S. Sailor directs an MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter during nighttime flight operations aboard guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) as the ship sails in the Arabian Sea and enforces the U.S. blockade against Iran. As of Aug. 14, CENTCOM forces have redirected 62 commercial… pic.twitter.com/HDMlwcGzAq
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) August 14, 2026
Earlier today, a vessel was targeted while transiting Hormuz, with the United Arab Emirates blaming Iran for the incident. Tehran did not immediately respond to the accusation.
On August 13, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the military had the capacity to maintain a regional naval presence to enforce the blockade. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington also planned further economic measures against Iran next week, describing them as unprecedented in the scale of financial isolation they would seek to impose.
