The Strait of Hormuz in the spotlight after the attacks on Iran

The Strait of Hormuz divides thecoasts of Iran and Oman.  islocated between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman , and  accountsfor 20% of the world's oil and gas production from its waters.  is therefore a strategic centre of global importance.

In this context, the attack by Israel and the US on Irancould have an impact on the international oil market , given Iran's significant production, and could also closethe Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic, directly affecting the global oil and gas market.

The averagepassagethrough this strait is  144 ships per day, of which 37% are tankers, 17% container ships and 13% dry cargo, according to the UN Trade and Development Maritime Transport Review (UNCTAD) report 2025.

The Strait of Hormuz  is 54 kilometres narrower. In 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, this route channelled a significant part of the oil-relatedmaritime trade , accordingtothe US Energy Information Administration. In addition, around 20% of the global trade in liquefied natural gas flows from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to Asian markets.

For years, the Iranauthorities have threatened Israeland the USto block maritime traffic, especially the latter, in response to sanctions imposed by Washington onits nuclear program .

In a pre-war crisis situation with the US in February 2026, Iran reported that several areas of the area had been temporarily closed due to naval manoeuvres in the Strait of Hormuz.

Previously, on June 21, 2025, the Iranian Parliament approved its closure after Donald Trump's new administration bombed Iran in the context of the conflict between Israel and the Persian country .

The center of many vicissitudes

Due to its geographical location incidents and incidents  have been recorded in recent years in the Persian Gulf, including attacks and seizures of oil tankers and freighters,amid tensions between Iran and the United States, particularly over the sanctions imposed by the latter on the saleof Iranian oil .

In 2015  decided to withdrawfrom the nuclear agreement signed by Iran and international countries  US 2018 on the grounds that Tehran had lied about its atomic program by considering that it had continued to enrich uranium above the permitted limits .

In April 2019, the situation worsened after the US tightened sanctions on Iran's oil export , threatening to block the strait.

in 2021, and in the face of attacks on oil tankers in recent years, Iran opened a strategic oil export hub in the Oman Sea, which for the first time prevented freighters from crossing the Strait of Hormuz. Crude oil would reach thefacility located in the coastal city of Jask , in thesouthern province of Hormozgan , through an oil pipeline from the Goreh oil field, in the Bushehr region.

This mega-project, which had 1,000 kilometres of pipeline, has the capacity to transfer 300,000 barrels of oil per day from Goreh to Jaskon in this first phase and could reach a million in the future.

For years, tensions have continued, such as in April 2024, following the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, in which seven revolutionary guards were killed. Tehran accused Tel Aviv of the attack and nearly closed that strait.