Cargo ships in the bay, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from the northern ras al-chaimah, near the border with the Musandam government of Oman in the United Arab Emirates on March 11, 2026. | Photo credit: Reuters
Five LPG ships, all Indian-flagged and bound for India, are anchored north of Dubai-Ras Al Khaimah, directly southwest of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a ship-tracking website.
These ships appear to be grouping together to exit the strait and are carrying more than 1.7 million tonnes of LPG. But they did not move on a day when Iran appeared set to halt any movement of ships through the strait after earlier saying it would allow the passage of ships from friendly countries.
Read: Iran-Israel War LIVE
On Friday (March 27, 2026), Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had turned back three ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, adding that the route had been closed to vessels traveling to and from ports associated with their “enemies”. “This morning, following the lies of the corrupt US president who claimed that the Strait of Hormuz was open, three container ships of different nationalities… were turned back after a warning from the IRGC Navy,” the Guards said on their Sepah News website. A total of 26 ships were recently approved by Iran to pass through the strait, on a route around Larak Island just off the country’s coast, dubbed the “Tehran toll booth” according to leading shipping journal Lloyd’s List. Most of them were owned by Greece and China, as well as other vessels owned by India, Pakistan and Syria.
Iran has previously announced that ships from India and some other countries – Russia, Iraq, Pakistan, China and Thailand – can pass through the strait. However, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said the US, Israel and some Gulf states involved in the current war would not be allowed to pass through the strait.
(With inputs from AFP)
Published – 28 Mar 2026 01:52 IST
