Three Tankers Exit Strait of Hormuz After 3-Day Halt as Iran Says 1 Passage Needed Approval
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 10
Three Tankers Exit Strait of Hormuz After 3-Day Halt as Iran Says 1 Passage Needed Approval
15 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 10
Three tankers left the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, Kpler said, ending three days with no exits through the chokepoint.
Two of the vessels — Kiara M and Agios Fanourios I — appear to be carrying Iraqi crude from Al Basrah toward Asia, while Stella seems to have been empty.
Kiara sailed with its transponder off, and Agios briefly appeared to turn back into the Persian Gulf before resuming its outward voyage into the Gulf of Oman.
Iran state media said only one tanker passed in the previous day and that the Iranian navy had approved the transit, underscoring Tehran's continued control over traffic.
Dozens of tankers used to leave daily before U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran; traffic has stayed sparse even during a month-old cease-fire after a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and Iranian threats against unauthorized ships.
As tankers vanish from trackers in the Strait of Hormuz, are they finding safety or creating deadlier risks?
Iran is trying to control the world's most vital oil chokepoint. Will international powers accept its new rules?
With two major shipping arteries now compromised, is the world prepared for an unprecedented supply chain crisis?