The Strait of Hormuz has become a hotspot for escalating attacks on oil tankers, with incidents reaching a wartime peak as Iran intensifies efforts to disrupt crude exports. In the week ending October 4, eleven tankers were targeted, marking the highest number of strikes on commercial vessels since the conflict began, and five more tankers have been attacked in the following week.
On Monday, a projectile struck the UAE-owned tanker On Peace, injuring twelve Indian sailors as it passed through Hormuz. The maritime security firm Marisks confirmed the details of the attack. The Joint Maritime Information Center, a coalition of U. S.-allied militaries based in Bahrain, issued a warning to commercial ships, highlighting Iran's ongoing efforts to assert its presence along key transit routes.
A senior official from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced on Wednesday that Iran intends to block all 'illicit routes' through Hormuz. This statement comes amid a resurgence in Middle Eastern crude oil exports, which have increased but remain below prewar levels, largely due to U. S. military escorts guiding ships along Oman's coast.
Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a senior maritime intelligence analyst at Windward, noted that while oil volumes are moving through the strait, the maritime risk remains extremely high. At least nine sailors have died in ship attacks since July, editor in chief of Lloyd's List.
Despite Iran's claims that the strait is closed, U. S. Central Command reported that 20 million barrels of crude oil had passed through Hormuz as of Wednesday. However, crude flows have decreased, with exports through Hormuz at 8.5 million barrels per day (bpd) for the week ending Wednesday, about 40% below normal prewar levels, according to Kpler data. Overall shipments from the Middle East were 15.3 million bpd, 10% below prewar figures.
Iran has not exported any crude oil since late August due to a U. S. naval blockade, threatening to target ships throughout the Persian Gulf that violate Iran's transit rules.
On Wednesday, a tanker was hit by multiple projectiles off the coast of Qatar, resulting in casualties. Gem No. 2 was struck by a projectile on Friday off the UAE coast, causing a fire onboard. The ship had departed from Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, in March and remained in the Persian Gulf since the conflict began.
Since the onset of the war, at least 24 sailors have died in attacks on 100 commercial ships across Hormuz, the Persian Gulf, and the Gulf of Oman, according to the IMO. The ongoing hostilities have raised concerns about the sustainability of crude exports from the region under such high-risk conditions.
