US sinks Iranian tanker in the Gulf of Oman as Hormuz traffic stays at 7 percent

Three Iranian tankers were attacked on Saturday, one of them sunk in the Gulf of Oman, while transits through the Strait of Hormuz are running at around six vessels a day against a pre-war norm of 85. That is day 191 of the US-Iran war as seen from the bridge of a tanker or gas carrier: war-risk premiums at several dozen times pre-crisis levels, P&I clubs withdrawing cover, and Gulf crude moving in a relay of shuttles and ship-to-ship transfers rather than on regular voyages.

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07 september 2026   |   22:41   |   Source: Gazeta Morska   |   Prepared by: Michał Iwański   |   Print

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Saturday's strikes

US Central Command said on Saturday that American forces had destroyed three Iranian tankers in retaliation for earlier Iranian attacks on US warships. Overnight it added that M/T Kylo, hit in the Gulf of Oman, had sunk; footage released by the US military shows the vessel listing and going down. The crew of the empty tanker had been ordered to evacuate before the strike. The two other vessels, M/T Downy off Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask on the Strait of Hormuz, were described by US Central Command as permanently disabled. All three were said to belong to Iran's shadow fleet.

- The M/T Kylo sank in the Gulf of Oman today and joined Iran's navy at the bottom of the sea, US Central Command said in its statement.

According to the US account, the strikes followed ballistic missile fire by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps towards a US aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer. Iranian media had reported several explosions near Kharg Island, home to Iran's largest oil terminal in the Persian Gulf, earlier on Saturday. Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, warned the Revolutionary Guard that for every two US warships fired upon, Iran would lose three of its own vessels, and said US forces would not hesitate to destroy what he called Iran's limited and exposed oil fleet if required. Saturday's exchange continued a round of strikes that resumed the previous weekend after a month-long pause. The war began at the end of February; its most intense phase ended in April, with sporadic clashes since.

Transit numbers

For commercial shipping the relevant figure is not who fired but how many ships got through. IMF PortWatch's latest published day, 30 August, recorded six vessels against a typical 85, or 7 percent of pre-crisis volume, with war-risk cover for tankers priced at 40 times pre-crisis levels and six P&I clubs withdrawing cover. Kpler counted five, eleven and six vessels on successive days last week. Before the war the strait carried roughly a fifth of the world's seaborne oil and LNG.

What does move, moves differently. Lloyd's List Intelligence describes a relay system of shuttle vessels, offshore ship-to-ship transfers and a pool of ships and crews willing to sail through the strait. Transits rose more than 30 percent in the week of 17 to 23 August, to 114, led by tankers and gas carriers, with tracked crude tankers from Sinokor, ADNOC and Saudi and Kuwaiti owners among them. Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of Lloyd's List, nonetheless described the industry as operating under crisis conditions rather than anything close to normality. Iran has set up its own body to police the corridor, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, which publishes lists of vessels facing future restrictions up to and including seizure.

The human cost is mounting. Lloyd's List counts at least 19 seafarer deaths from US and Iranian attacks on merchant ships. Last week the tanker Al Salam II was hit while transiting the strait and Metro Venetian was struck off Ash Shishah, Oman. The Revolutionary Guard claimed two tankers had struck mines while attempting what it called an illegal route, and Saudi Arabia said an Iranian attack on a Saudi tanker had killed two Filipino seafarers.

The southern gate

The Red Sea's southern entrance is under strain at the same time. More than 300 people have died in recent days in fighting between Yemeni government forces and the Iran-backed Houthis, whose offensive is pushing towards the Bab el-Mandeb strait. South Korea is preparing to send a warship and troops to the Hormuz area. For operators who shifted tonnage to the Cape of Good Hope after February, the combination means the return to the shorter route is receding regardless of what happens in the strait itself.

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