Tehran:
Iran has restricted the passage of at least one vessel owned and operated by India-based entities from transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Bulk carrier Maha Roos has been added to the Persian Gulf Strait Authority’s list of 45 “non-compliant” vessels for allegedly violating “Iranian protocols” for passage through the strait.
An analysis of the ownership and management records showed that, apart from vessels directly linked to India, some of the other blacklisted ships also had a history of transporting cargo, particularly energy, to India.
Maritime records also showed that most vessels on the list are linked to entities based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Other ships are linked to countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Malta, and Singapore, among others. A Pakistan-flagged crude oil tanker named Mardan has also been blacklisted.
“In light of violations by certain vessels of the Iranian arrangements for transiting the Strait of Hormuz, these vessels will face restrictions in their future transits through the Strait of Hormuz, such as fines, seizure, or confiscation,” the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) said in a post on X.
The Iranian agency also warned that any vessel cooperating with listed vessels will also be added to the list.
“To request removal, vessels must submit a formal application with justifications to PGSA,” it added.
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Vessels violating Iranian protocols for the #Strait_of_Hormuz shall face restrictions on future passages, including fines, detention, or confiscation. https://t.co/B8BWeitpzh— PGSA | نهاد مدیریت آبراه خلیج فارس (@PGSA_IRAN) August 23, 2026
Most Ships Already Attacked By Iran
Since the conflict erupted in late February, Tehran has sought to impose its own shipping corridor in a bid to control traffic through the strategic chokepoint, which had been open before the war and governed by international maritime law. But not all vessels have been passing through this Iranian-approved route in the northern part of the waterway.
One-third of the vessels Iran has threatened to confiscate for breaching Strait of Hormuz transit rules have already been attacked during the Middle East war, an AFP data analysis found.
Of the 45 vessels on the list, at least 14 have already been damaged in incidents in or around the strait that were confirmed by the International Maritime Organisation.
All of these incidents were classified as attacks by Britain’s maritime security agency UKMTO, which does not specify who was responsible.
Almost all took place off Oman’s coast, along a route backed by the United States and banned by Iran.
The vast majority of the vessels (39) on Iran’s list are commodity carriers that have transited the strait at least once since early March, according to an AFP analysis of data from maritime tracking platform Kpler.
Kpler data shows that some have crossed the strait as many as 12 times, including the tanker Al Bahyah, one of whose crew members was killed in an incident in July.
Of the more than 170 voyages by these commodity carriers recorded by Kpler over the same period, 75 had a port in the United Arab Emirates as their next destination, while around 70 had made their last loading stop there.
In addition, at least one-third of the vessels on Iran’s list are owned by Emirati companies, according to Kpler data.
