Maritime traffic through two of the Middle East's most critical chokepoints showed starkly contrasting trends on Thursday, with transits through the Strait of Hormuz plunging while movements through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait picking up, leading data and analytics firm Kpler said Friday.
Kpler said on X that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday "fell to six confirmed crossings, down 60 percent from the previous day." All but one of the vessels used a shipping lane designated by Iran, its post read.
Meanwhile, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, saw 49 vessels complete transits the same day, a figure above the recent average, according to Kpler.
The divergence comes amid heightened tensions in the region, with maritime traffic around the Strait of Hormuz facing security risks. The U.S. military has recently resumed naval blockade against vessels transiting to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas.
Kpler also said that some vessels that had previously turned back due to security concerns in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea had resumed navigation and successfully completed their passages. However, other ships remained anchored, awaiting further safety assessments.
The overall situation was characterized by what Kpler described as "cautious but selective resumption" of maritime activity, with international shipping firms continuing to evaluate the security conditions in the region.
In another development, a vessel carrying 30 crew members reported coming under attack and issued a distress call near the Strait of Hormuz, according to audio recordings from a public VHF maritime radio channel on Friday. The vessel, named Disha, was attacked by unknown missiles near the eastern entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and in need of immediate assistance, according to the recordings.
Maritime activity remains mixed across Middle East's key oil chokepoints: Kpler
