Strait of Hormuz: Escalating maritime attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz have severely disrupted global shipping after Iran blocked the strategic waterway following US-Israeli strikes. Meanwhile, Iran’s Assembly of Experts selected Mojtaba Khamenei, the 56-year-old son of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, to succeed his father.
As tensions intensified after the war erupted on February 28, roughly 10 vessels operating near the strait came under attack within a week. Consequently, tanker traffic through one of the world’s most important oil corridors dropped sharply.
Attacks target vessels and rescue operations
According to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), nine separate attacks struck commercial vessels in the strait within a week. Notably, four of those incidents killed seven crew members.
On March 2, missiles hit four vessels — Skylight, MKD Vyom, Stena Imperative and Hercules Star — killing one person in each of three attacks. Subsequently, between March 3 and March 5, four more ships came under fire: Libra Trader, Gold Oak, Safeen Prestige and Sonangol Namibe.
Then on March 6, a missile strike on the vessel Mussafah 2 killed four people, according to the IMO. However, Indonesian authorities later reported that three Indonesian crew members remain missing, one survivor suffered injuries and four other crew members survived.
Shipping traffic plunges across critical oil corridor
The Strait of Hormuz normally carries nearly 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. Nevertheless, maritime activity dropped dramatically after the attacks intensified.
Data from analysis firm Kpler showed tanker traffic falling by about 90 percent within a week. Similarly, MarineTraffic data reviewed by AFP detected only nine commercial ships crossing the strait since Monday, with some vessels intermittently masking their positions.
Meanwhile, maritime security firm Vanguard reported that two missiles struck Mussafah 2 while it attempted to assist the previously damaged container ship Safeen Prestige.
Furthermore, the Joint Maritime Information Centre warned that vessels helping damaged ships now face an increased risk of follow-up strikes, indicating a campaign aimed at disrupting commercial movement rather than sinking ships outright.
