When will Strait of Hormuz be ‘safe’ for commercial shipping again?

EXPLAINERFeatures|ExplainerWhen will Strait of Hormuz be ‘safe’ for commercial shipping again?How long before insurance companies consider Hormuz transits safe again – even once navies claim they have cleared the mine there?ListenListen (10 mins)SaveClick here to share on social mediashare-nodesSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoThe Epaminondas ship is seen during seizure by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran, on April 24, 2026 [Meysam Mirzadeh/Tasnim/WANA via Reuters]By Yashraj SharmaPublished On 28 Apr 202628 Apr 2026Since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran nine weeks ago, the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) is shipped during peacetime, has become the chokepoint of the global economy.The tremors from the effective closure of the strait – a narrow artery linking oil and gas producers in the Gulf to the open seas – are being felt across the world, stoking fears of a global recession.About 2,000 ships remain stranded in the Gulf, waiting to be allowed through. But even if the strait is reopened to all traffic, there will still be obstacles to shipping. The United States has said it will take six months to clear mines it believes have been laid by Iran. Indeed, this was one of the main reasons that maritime insurers cancelled “war risk” insurance for tankers travelling through the strait in March.Even if the strait reopens, a high level of risk will remain for ships crossing through, which could push premiums up by about 0.25 percent of hull value before the war to as much as 5 percent now, shipping insurers told Al Jazeera this week.So, what would it take for insurers to underwrite the Strait of Hormuz as safe?Iranian soldiers stand guard in Tehran on April 9, 2026, under a large portrait of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during a memorial to mark the 40th day since his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in US-Israeli joint strikes [Majid Saeedi/Getty Images]What’s happening in the Strait of Hormuz?The Iranian military shut the strait, which is shared between the territorial waters of Iran and Oman, following the February 28 strikes on Tehran that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has taken over the top job in Tehran since. Advertisement Tehran used access to the strait as its most powerful leverage in talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 11, but these failed to yield results.Two days later, US President Donald Trump announced a naval blockade of Iranian ports and the Strait of Hormuz to put economic pressure on Tehran, which had until then been able to ship its own exports through the passage. Washington has since captured or turned back ships linked to Iran – both in the Gulf and in the Indo-Pacific region – which Tehran has denounced as “piracy”.While Tehran was previously allowing ships from countries it deemed “friendly” or which paid a toll – mostly from India, Pakistan, Turkiye and China – to pass the strait, it has now closed it to all foreign-flagged ships until the US lifts its naval blockade.Meanwhile, Iran has published a map showing parts of the strait that it said had been mined, and an alternative route for approved ships earlier this month. This route brings ships much closer to the coast of Iran, whereas they previously passed closer to Oman. Iran said this was to help tankers avoid the danger of mines.On Thursday,…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera.