A commercial tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, forcing its crew to abandon the vessel, as attacks on commercial shipping in the region continue to intensify.
According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the incident occurred around 8 nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman, at approximately 20:10 UTC on July 20.
The vessel’s company security officer reported that all crew members safely evacuated into a lifeboat following the strike. Authorities are investigating the incident, and no pollution has been reported.
The latest attack came just a day after another vessel, sailing 17 nautical miles east of Dibba in the United Arab Emirates, suffered steering damage after being hit by an unidentified projectile.
The affected vessel was identified as the VLCC Acheloos, owned by Greek shipping company Dynacom Tankers, making it the second vessel operated by the company to come under attack within 24 hours.
Earlier, Dynacom’s product tanker Kavomaleas was also struck in the Strait of Hormuz, triggering a fire that forced its crew to abandon the ship.
The incidents mean at least three commercial vessels have been attacked in or around the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, raising fresh concerns over the security of one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes.
The attacks come as the United States continues military operations targeting Iranian military infrastructure. US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its latest strikes targeted Iranian command centers, missile and drone launch sites, maritime assets, and air defense systems to reduce threats to commercial shipping.
Despite the ongoing conflict, CENTCOM said commercial traffic continues through the Strait, with US forces facilitating around 900 vessel transits since early May.
However, maritime data indicates that shipping activity has dropped sharply. According to Clarksons Research, vessel crossings through the Strait of Hormuz have fallen to around 12 per day—nearly 90% below pre-conflict levels over the past five days.
Crude oil shipments have also declined significantly, averaging approximately 1.5 million barrels per day compared with around 10 million barrels per day in early July. The firm also reported that no mainstream very large gas carriers have departed the Gulf in the past 10 days, while no fully loaded Qatari LNG carriers have transited the Strait for nearly two weeks.
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