Iran vets friendly ships for Hormuz passage: trackers / Photo: STR - AFP
-
Leftist New York mayor under pressure on Irish unity question
-
Atletico boss Simeone defends Spurs star Romero
-
Iran vets friendly ships for Hormuz passage: trackers
-
Iran women's football team arrive in Turkey on way home
-
Mexico prepared to host Iran World Cup games, says president
-
Trump blasts 'foolish' NATO on Iran, says US needs no help
-
Slot vows to win back support of frustrated Liverpool fans
-
In Ukraine, Sean Penn gifted Oscar made from train carriage hit by Russia
-
Ships in Gulf risk shortages on board, industry warns
-
White House piles pressure on Cuba as island fights power cut
-
Newcastle must grow under Camp Nou pressure: Howe
-
Trump says to make delayed China trip in 'five or six weeks'
-
Kompany warns of complacency as injury-hit Bayern host Atalanta
-
SAS cancels flights after fuel prices surge
-
New particle discovered by Large Hadron Collider
-
Lebanon says Israeli strikes kill soldiers, as shelters overflow
-
Van de Ven insists it's 'nonsense' to say players don't care about Spurs' plight
-
Argentina withdraws from World Health Organization
-
US Fed expected to keep rates steady as Iran war impact looms
-
Two men in Kenyan court for ant-smuggling
-
Cuba scrambles to restore power as Trump threatens takeover
-
War fuels fears of new oil crisis
-
Kerr 'frustrated' at six-figure sum owed to him by Johnson's failed Grand Slam Track
-
Senior US counterterrorism official resigns to protest Iran war
-
In shadow of Iran war, Gazans prepare for Eid
-
Oil prices climb as fresh strikes target infrastructure
-
Southern Lebanon paramedics risk deadly Israeli strikes to do their work
-
Len Deighton, spy novelist who created the anti-Bond
-
Barca Flick's 'last job' but not yet certain on renewal
-
Belgian diplomat ordered to stand trial over 1961 Congo leader murder
-
Pope says idea England 'weren't fussed' about the Ashes was tough to take
-
War threatens Gulf's dugongs, turtles and birds
-
Germany targets oil firms to prevent wartime price gouging
-
Chelsea striker Kerr sends Australia into Asian Cup final
-
'East meets West': KPop Demon Hunters brings global fans to Seoul's sites
-
EU to help reopen blocked oil pipeline in Ukraine
-
Thai eSports players sentenced over SEA Games cheating scandal
-
Nigeria suicide bombings kill 23, wound more than 100
-
Iran's Larijani, the man whose power grew during Mideast war
-
Israel says killed Iran national security chief Larijani
-
Millions of Indonesians in Eid travel exodus
-
Israel strikes Beirut suburbs as displacement shelters overflow
-
Hard-hitting Conway steers New Zealand to victory over South Africa
-
During Ramadan, Senegal's Baye Fall community lives to serve
-
Afghan govt says 'around 400' killed in Pakistani strike on Kabul rehab clinic
-
Russian ballet banned for 'gay propaganda' gets new life in Berlin
-
Malaysia hit with 3-0 forfeits to send Vietnam to Asian Cup
-
Rescue workers comb ruins of Kabul drug clinic after Pakistan strike
-
'Many dead': Wounded survivor escaped Kabul clinic strike
-
Belgian court decides on holding trial over 1961 Congo leader murder
Iran vets friendly ships for Hormuz passage: trackers
Iran is selecting ships from friendly countries to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial trade waterway cut off by the Middle East war, data trackers indicated Tuesday.
Tehran's forces have closed off the waterway, through which a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passes in peacetime, with deadly hits reported on vessels since the war began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
But at least five ships exited the Strait via Iranian waters on March 15 and 16, maritime intelligence firm Windward said in an analysis report on Tuesday.
"The new route illustrates how Iran's selective blockade has evolved to allow allies and supporters to transit", it said, citing its tracking as "rising evidence that Iran is exerting permission-based transit and control of the strait".
Natasha Kaneva, a commodities analyst at JPMorgan bank, said in an analysis on Monday that at least four ships had been tracked exiting the strait via the Larak–Qeshm Channel, near the Iranian coast, over the previous two days.
"This is not a standard route for vessels and could reflect a process designed to confirm vessel ownership and cargo, enabling passage for ships that are not affiliated to the US or its allies," she said in a note sent to AFP.
The vessels included bulk carriers and one oil tanker, the Pakistani-flagged Karachi.
Tracking site MarineTraffic said the Karachi transited the strait with its automatic transponder system activated -- where most vessels keep it turned off to avoid being targeted.
Kaneva said most of the crude passing through the strait was headed for Asia, principally China.
Several countries have opened talks with Tehran to secure passage for their vessels, while the United States has pushed allies to provide military protection for shipping in the region.
Two Indian-flagged tankers carrying liquefied petroleum gas reached Indian ports after crossing the strait over the weekend after officials from the countries said they held talks.
A Turkish-owned ship was also able to cross the strait with Iran's permission, Turkey's transport minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said in comments published on Friday.
K.Hill--AT