News

What life is like for 20,000 seafarers trapped at Strait of Hormuz  The Times

Iran May Allow Oil Tankers Through Strait Of Hormuz, But There's A China Catch  NDTV

By Nidhi Verma and Saurabh Sharma NEW DELHI, March 14 (Reuters) - India has sought safe passage for 22 of its vessels stranded west of the Strait of Hormuz, a foreign affairs ministry spokesperson said on Saturday, after Iran allowed a few Indian ships to sail through, in a rare exception to the blockade. Randhir Jaiswal told a press conference that India has stayed in touch with all major parties in the Middle East - including Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran, the U.S. and Israel - to convey its priorities, particularly on energy security.

Trump urges countries to send warships to secure Strait of Hormuz  Türkiye Today

Trump says 'many countries' will send warships to keep Strait of Hormuz open  Reuters

Trump urges other nations to help secure shipping through Strait of Hormuz  Reuters

US lifts sanctions on some Russian oil, about 5-6 days' worth of shipments from Strait of Hormuz  Fortune

Closure of strait of Hormuz puts pressure on region’s economies amid growing resentment about conflict started by US and Israel Middle East crisis – live updates An eerie quiet hangs over Ras Al Khaimah’s industrial port. Usually a thriving maritime hub of the United Arab Emirates, now ships stand docked and silent. Not far out along the hazy horizon, a backlog of hundreds of tankers have lined up in recent days, halted along a waterway flooded with danger. Any vessel heading past Ras Al Khaimah out to the Arabian Sea must traverse the world’s most treacherous strip of water for shipping today: the strait of Hormuz. Just over 20 nautical miles from Ras Al Khaimah, two oil tankers heading for the strait were attacked by Iranian missiles this week, one catching fire. Continue reading...

Middle East crisis live: Trump calls on China, France, UK and others to send ships to keep strait of Hormuz open  The Guardian

Trump vows Strait of Hormuz will open 'one way or another,' threatens military action  ynetnews

Iran’s new supreme leader says Strait of Hormuz should be used as leverage  KXAN Austin

Pentagon says Iranian attacks have dropped sharply | Concerns about Strait of Hormuz remain  KHOU

Iran allows limited transit of Indian vessels through Strait of Hormuz: Envoy  madhyamamonline.com

Kharg Island, targeted in US air strikes on Saturday, is a scrubby stretch of land in the Gulf that handles almost all of Iran's crude exports. Announcing the strikes, US President Donald Trump described Kharg as a "crown jewel" for Iran and maintained that every military target on the island had been "totally obliterated". The island, located around 30 kilometres (19 miles) off the Iranian mainland, is a hub for roughly 90 percent of Iran's crude exports, according to a JP Morgan note released earlier this month.

TEHRAN, Mar. 14 (MNA) – A deputy of Bushehr governor says that exports from the major Iranian oil terminal on the Kharg island in the Persian Gulf is continuing as normal.

Trump Calls on Allied Nations to Send Warships to Secure Strait of Hormuz  Kurdistan24

Smoke seen rising from direction of UAE energy facility: AFP Smoke was rising from the direction of a major UAE energy installation on Saturday, in what appeared to be the latest strike targeting the Gulf's petroleum facilities - hours after the US struck Iran's Kharg Island oil hub.  Clouds of dark black smoke were seen coming from Fujairah, which is home to a major port where Iranian attacks have already targeted an oil storage and trading hub. The port is also home to a key oil export terminal.  Local authorities, in an online statement, said debris falling after a successful drone interception had caused a fire, without specifying the location.

Why Kharg Island is central to Iran’s oil exports. Kharg Island sits at the heart of Iran’s oil export infrastructure in the northern Gulf, handling 90 percent of Iran's crude exports, making it one of the most strategically important energy hubs in the region. Located about 30km off Iran’s mainland, the island hosts the country’s main oil export terminal, where crude from oil  fields across Iran is stored and loaded onto tankers for shipment to international markets. The island has a vast network of pipelines linking major oilfields to its storage facilities and loading jetties. Because of this concentration of infrastructure, Kharg Island has long been considered a critical choke-point for Iran’s energy sector: any disruption there can have immediate implications for the country’s oil revenues and global supply flows. Its strategic importance has also made Kharg Island a target during periods of conflict. During the Iran–Iraq War in the 1980s, the island was repeatedly attacked in what became known as the “Tanker War”, as both sides sought to cripple each other’s oil exports in the Gulf. Decades later, the site remains a focal point in regional tensions, given its central role in Iran’s ability to export crude to global markets.

Smoke rises from Fujairah oil facility in UAE

HORMUZ TRACKER: Saudi Suezmax Reappears Off Mumbai; LPG to India  Bloomberg.com