SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Two crew members sustained minor injuries after a tanker was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, September 21.
In a statement on X, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said military authorities reported that the tanker was conducting an inbound transit when it was hit.
The vessel continued towards its next port of call under its own power, while no environmental impact was reported. Authorities were investigating the incident.
UKMTO advised vessels operating in the area to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity.
Strait of Hormuz traffic declines
The incident came as tensions between the US and Iran continued to affect commercial shipping through the strategic waterway.
Reuters reported that 17 commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, compared with 37 a week earlier, according to shipping data released on Monday.
Before the war, the strait carried about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. Visible vessel traffic has since fallen sharply, although Middle Eastern producers continue to export oil on tankers with their transponders switched off.
Iran sets conditions for reopening strait
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday, September 20, that Tehran had conveyed its conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz to Washington through intermediaries.
According to Iran’s Tasnim news agency, Ghalibaf said Tehran would not change its position until its demands were met and US commitments were implemented.
“Until these conditions are met, the legitimate rights of the Iranian nation are recognised, and the Americans’ commitments are implemented, there will be no opening for a return to the previous conditions for negotiations or the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
Iran’s Armed Forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi said the initiative in the strategic waterway remained with Iran’s armed forces, Tasnim reported. He also rejected US statements about maritime traffic through the strait as a psychological operation.
The confrontation followed US and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on February 28.
SOURCE : SIASAT
