Shipping traffic in Gulf of Hormuz falls to 6 vessels

International Shipping traffic in Gulf of Hormuz falls to 6 vessels Comments: by Ryan Mancini - 08/11/26 1:12 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Ryan Mancini - 08/11/26 1:12 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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The Strait of Hormuz saw its traffic drop from around 11 vessels a day to 6 over the weekend, as reopening talks between the United States and Iran drag on.

Trade intelligence company Kpler reported Monday that, from Friday to Sunday, a total of 32 ships passed through the strait — 17 of which used Iran’s determined path of transit. Another 10 took a route Kpler listed as “undetermined.”

The Bab el Mandeb Strait, a Red Sea route southwest of Hormuz, was “considerably more active,” the company reported. Even amid an ongoing Houthi blockade, Bab el Mandeb saw 116 crossings this weekend.

Houthi militants have continued to carry out attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, including a Tuesday strike against a commercial ship off the coast of the Yemeni government-held port city of Mokha, which killed four people aboard. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said its authorities are investigating the incident.

The Houthis deployed their blockade months after urging the U.S., Israel and the Persian Gulf states not to escalate the conflict with Iran — warning that they would retaliate.

Iranian officials on Sunday said an agreement with Oman to set up new shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz was in its final stages. But, earlier in the weekend, Iran said it wouldn’t fully reopen until U.S. leaders meet certain conditions — including compensating Tehran for war damages, lifting sanctions and permanently ending the conflict.

President Trump countered this, saying on Monday that Iran should pay reparations for those who have died in the war, as well as for those killed in attacks from throughout the last 50 years.

Despite Iran’s demands, the president insisted to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday that the Strait of Hormuz is “open now.”

“We control the strait 100 percent. Now, can [Iran] make trouble? Yeah, they can make trouble, but they’re broke … and now they’re paying a price,” Trump added.

The demands coming from Tehran largely fall within the framework of the initial interim peace deal it signed with Washington in June, which has since been abandoned after both countries carried out back-and-forth strikes for nearly two weeks.

In July, Trump considered launching a “massive attack” on Iran before calling it off to allow for negotiations — a cycle he’s frequently repeated since the conflict began in February.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Iranian news outlet Tasnim Saturday that Iran and the U.S. are “very close to an agreement,” though it is “contingent” on the U.S. again agreeing to June’s the interim peace deal.

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