Trickle of ships pass through Hormuz under Iran’s gaze

• Omani, French and Japanese vessels
• No ships with US or Israeli links
• Traffic rerouting north of Larak

A handful of ships have begun passing through the Strait of Hormuz under tightly controlled conditions with passage so far limited to vessels without clear US or Israeli links.

Three Omani-operated tankers, a French-owned container ship and a Japanese-linked gas carrier, have crossed the Strait of Hormuz since April 1, according to shipping data.

A ship signalling its destination as “India ship India crew” and a Panama-flagged very large gas carrier also left the Gulf through the chokepoint heading for China last Friday, Reuters reported.

The Omani-linked vessels – two very large crude carriers and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier – appeared to enter the waterway by hugging their home coastline rather than taking the northern Iranian-controlled route used by most vessels in recent weeks.

Last Thursday, Iran said it was drafting a protocol with Muscat to monitor traffic through the strait. Oman has not publicly confirmed any such arrangement or explained how passage is being agreed.

A tanker carrying Iraqi crude made its way through the strait on Sunday, Bloomberg reported, after Iran said it would grant an exemption to “brotherly Iraq”.

No ships with US or Israeli links are known to have transited.

Oman mediated pre-war talks between Iran and the US and criticised the strikes when they began. It has sought to stay neutral during the conflict but has not escaped the fallout, with drones striking Duqm port early in the war.

The French-owned vessel changed its Automatic Identification System (AIS) destination to “Owner France” before entering Iranian waters. Reuters reported it was sailing south along Oman’s coast after the crossing.

The Japanese-linked gas carrier also crossed, though its route was unclear after tracking signals disappeared during transit. 

Larak, sparsely populated and close to one of the narrowest stretches of the strait, has become one of the most sensitive points in the waterway.

Maritime traffic has been rerouting north of the island through an “Iran-approved corridor”. Lloyd’s List described the northern corridor as a “Tehran toll booth”, saying it traced dozens of vessels using it from March 13 and reporting that some operators paid fees of up to $2 million for safe passage.

Iran shut the narrow sea lane – which carries about a fifth of global oil and LNG flows – after US and Israeli strikes at the end of February widened into a broader conflict. 

There have been more than two dozen incidents in the Gulf, from ships being sunk to vessels set ablaze. At least a dozen merchant mariners have been killed. 

A small number of Greek, Maltese, Indian and China-linked vessels were allowed through the strait last month. The apparent use of a southern coastal route by the Omani-linked tankers would mark a notable departure from that pattern.

Tracking movements remain difficult because ships often switch off AIS transponders during crossings and because of signal jamming and spoofing in the area.

• The Hormuz shipping crisis in numbers
• Iran operating shipping ‘toll booth’ north of Larak Island
• Hormuz disruption reshapes bunker shipping fuel flows

Iranian-linked tankers – including ships tied to Tehran’s so-called shadow fleet – have continued lifting crude from Kharg Island, 650km northwest of the strait.

Saleem Khan, chief data and analytics officer at Pole Star Global, a maritime intelligence firm, said several vessels had broadcast unusual AIS locations as a political signal.

“Some ships leaving the region are broadcasting extraordinary ‘destinations’ such as ‘China Owner and All Crew’, turning what should be a navigational field into a live political message: don’t shoot, we’re not your target.”