First Tanker Passes Strait of Hormuz Post US Blockade

The first tanker since the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the Malta-flagged Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Agios Panagiotis I, passed through the strait heading west on the 15th (local time), according to ship tracking site MarineTraffic. The vessel was able to pass the strait on its second attempt after anchoring in the Gulf of Oman for about two days, reported Russia's Izvestia.

Around 0:58 AM Iran time on the 15th, the vessel's Automatic Identification System (AIS) status changed from 'at anchor' to 'underway using engine,' and it was confirmed to have passed the strait around 5:21 AM. The Agios Panagiotis I entered the Persian Gulf around 6:06 AM the same day and is scheduled to dock in Basra, Iraq, on the 16th.

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that nine ships had turned back towards Iranian ports or coastlines in the two days following the commencement of blockade measures against Iranian vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM claimed no ships transited U.S. military control in the 48 hours after the blockade began.