Data: 9 ships transited Hormuz and 26 passed Bab al-Mandeb, including an Iraqi tanker

Data showed on Friday that the number of ships that transited the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday fell to nine, compared with 14 the previous day.

According to the data, eight ships departed and one ship entered the strait, noting that some vessels may be sailing through the waterways with their transponders switched off and therefore are not included in these counts.

It added that among the eight departing ships were a very large gas carrier sailing in ballast and an ultra-large crude oil tanker that was loaded; by contrast, one dry bulk carrier entered the strait.

Regarding the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, data from Kpler showed that ship transit activity yesterday remained little changed compared with the previous day, with 26 ships in total—12 entering and 14 leaving.

Among the vessels that entered from the strait was an ultra-large crude oil tanker loaded with Iraqi Basra crude and bound for Egypt, and it had its transponder switched on.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) had announced last Wednesday that it rerouted 115 commercial vessels to maintain strict enforcement of the "steel wall" embargo on Iran since it resumed on July 14.

Control of the Strait of Hormuz, a transit route for about one-fifth of the world’s oil, has become a major point of contention in talks aimed at de-escalation with Iran.

With negotiations to reach an agreement to reopen the waterway stalled, U.S. President Donald Trump has returned to economic pressure in the form of sanctions and a U.S. blockade.