Two 'zombie' ships have been observed navigating through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil route currently blocked by Iran amid escalating tensions with the United States and Israel. The strait, through which about a fifth of global oil trade passes, has become a flashpoint in the conflict that began after joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian sites on 28 February.
According to reports from Australian news site news.com, a Japanese-owned liquefied natural gas tanker and a vehicle carrier have recently traversed the channel. The tanker is believed to have been decommissioned and scrapped before the war, but has since re-emerged under its original identity.
A 'zombie' ship is a vessel operating under the identity of a ship that has been officially retired, a tactic often used to evade sanctions, transport illicit cargo, or bypass safety regulations. Traffic through the strait has plummeted since the conflict began, and Iran faces mounting pressure to reopen the route, which is the only exit from the Persian Gulf.
