A tanker that was struck while trying to cross the Strait of Hormuz is sinking, Iran’s state television IRIB reported.
According to Reuters, the oil tanker Skylight is sinking. The vessel was attacked off the coast of Oman and was sailing under the flag of Palau. According to the Marinetraffic service, Skylight was heading from the Iraqi port of Basra to the Omani port of Hasab.
Reuters also reports that the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker MKD Vyom was also damaged off the coast of Oman.
Amid the Israeli and US military operation against Iran and Tehran’s attacks, retaliatory ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped sharply. Dozens of cargo ships are waiting in waters off the coasts of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and the UAE, avoiding passage through the strait, according to Lebanese TV channel Al Mayadeen.
At least 100 oil tankers are off the coast of the UAE and Oman outside the strait. Reuters also reports that at least 150 tankers have anchored in open waters off the Gulf coast.
Earlier, Iranian authorities announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to trade. About 20 per cent of the world’s oil and up to 30 per cent of global liquefied natural gas shipments pass through it. The strait is called one of the key energy arteries of the world.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the key routes for supplying oil from the Persian Gulf countries to Asian markets. About one fifth of the world’s crude oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, which is only 40 kilometres wide at its narrowest point.