The US military says traffic in the Strait of Hormuz continues to gain momentum amid concerns that escalating fighting between Saudi Arabia and Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen threatens another vital artery for global oil supplies in the region.
CENTCOM said in a statement to RFE/RL on September 16 that the strait “remains open for transit.” A key artery for global energy supplies, the strategic waterway has been a focal point in the war between the United States and Iran.
“Traffic is flowing and momentum is building despite Iranian attempts to intimidate and harm innocent civilian crews,” the statement said.
“In recent months, thousands of commercial ships and nearly one billion barrels of oil have transited through the strait. Iran clearly does not control it. The international waterway remains open for transit,” it added.
Commercial traffic through Hormuz has plunged since the Iran war began in February.
Tehran has sought to assert control over navigation through the strait and has attacked commercial vessels, while the United States is enforcing a naval blockade aimed at preventing ships from serving Iranian ports and has also attacked Iran-linked vessels.
Before the war, the Strait of Hormuz handled about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, making it one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints. Around 125 large commercial vessels a day typically passed through the waterway before the conflict.
Meanwhile, Houthi rebels in Yemen have captured ground overlooking the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea in recent days, threatening the flow of oil through another main shipping artery in the Middle East.
Saudi Arabian warplanes pounded Yemen on September 16 while Houthi fighters launched drones and missiles at Saudi cities as the clashes continue to escalate.
The Houthis have fired repeatedly into Saudi Arabia over the past week.
An attack attributed to the Iran-aligned fighters in Iraq last week knocked out Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, the main route it has used to divert oil exports with the Strait of Hormuz blocked.
