UK Minister for Middle East Affairs Hamish Falconer assessed Iran's attacks on its allies in the Gulf as a serious escalation and a clear violation of international law. Falconer stated that ensuring freedom of passage without any threat in the Strait of Hormuz is a priority.
In a statement on Thursday, Falconer said that Iran's attacks in Omani waters violate international law and warned that the economic pressure resulting from the continued closure of the strait would push the most vulnerable people further into hunger and poverty. The British minister noted that they would continue to convey their country's perspective strongly and directly to Iranian representatives and relevant parties, and expressed hope that diplomatic efforts would succeed and a ceasefire would be restored.
Maritime Traffic Almost Halted
Ship tracking data revealed on Thursday that maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz had almost completely stopped. According to Bloomberg, movement in the strait was largely limited to a route approved by Iran and close to the northern side of the strait.
The data indicates that intermittent electronic jamming signals have returned. This suggests that countries have activated defense systems aimed at intercepting unmanned aerial vehicles belonging to hostile forces, and this process may affect the transceiver signals of ships.
Tracking data detected two empty ships entering the Gulf of Oman and heading toward the eastern entrance of Hormuz. Additionally, southeast of Oman's Lima region, ships were observed traveling at unusually high speeds of at least 30 knots in the early hours of Thursday morning.
In contrast, the US-backed Oman corridor remained calm. In the strait, only a giant oil tanker subject to US sanctions was seen leaving the Gulf, and an Iranian-flagged container ship passed through. It is assessed that other ships may have crossed the strait by turning off their transceivers.
These developments coincided with the resumption of US attacks on Iranian cities. Iran responded with missile strikes on US military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.
