LPG tanker struck near Oman as nearly 500 vessels wait outside Hormuz

Centre · 1A liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanker was struck by an unknown projectile on October 22 while sailing out of the Strait of Hormuz, about seven nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). 1 Centre · 1No casualties or environmental impact were reported from that incident. 1 Centre · 1The Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), in an advisory covering March 1 to October 25, rated the threat level in the Strait of Hormuz as severe, with deliberate hostile action highly likely. It said further attacks were highly likely, citing the October 22 incident and a separate attack west of Bukha on October 21. 1

Centre · 1Traffic remains far below normal: the JMIC reported 101 US-facilitated transits between October 22 and 24, against a historical baseline of about 138 vessel transits a day. 1 Centre · 1As of October 25 the JMIC estimated around 492 vessels were waiting outside the strait, including about 194 near Fujairah and Khor Fakkan, 178 off Dubai, 55 near Musandam and Sohar, and 32 off Bandar Abbas and Qeshm. Gulf News noted there was no immediate confirmation from UAE officials of these congestion figures. 1 Centre · 1The advisory described continued Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps activity, including drone overflights, surveillance of merchant vessels, radio hailing and pressure on ships to change routes. It warned of possible mining and said ships with AIS switched on may face higher targeting risk and instructions to divert to the northern route controlled by Iran. 1

Centre · 1The JMIC said the US naval blockade of Iranian ports remained in force; US Central Command figures cited in the advisory showed 138 commercial vessels redirected by October 17 and four disabled on October 10 and 11. Separately, UAE authorities confirmed oil pollution along the Umm Al Quwain coastline on October 23, linked to a tanker damaged in an earlier attack, and the Tanzanian-flagged MT Asana, seized on July 17 off Yemen, remained hijacked. 1 Centre · 1Hindustan Times places the disruption in the context of a war that began on February 28, 2026, when the US and Israel attacked Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei; it says Iran announced the closure of the strait, through which roughly one-fifth of the world's oil passes, and also targeted Gulf states including Oman, Bahrain and the UAE. 2 Centre · 1It reports the strait remains effectively closed to normal commercial shipping despite President Donald Trump's claim on October 23 that "We are getting everything we want"; a Washington-based think tank counted 113 attacks since the war began, and the International Maritime Organization listed more than 30 VLCCs as damaged, per Reuters. 2

Centre · 1Hindustan Times compares the situation with the 1973 Arab oil embargo after the Yom Kippur War, when prices rose from $2.90 to $11.65 a barrel between October 1973 and January 1974, and notes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied seeking a pre-election strike on Iran. 2