President Donald Trump announced a blockade of all ships coming to or from Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday starting at 4 pm French time. What is the state of traffic in the strait on Monday evening?
Published on April 13, 2026, at 8:14 PM | Reading time: 2min
The American maritime blockade went into effect on Monday, April 13 at 4 pm French time in the Strait of Hormuz. After the failure of negotiations between the United States and Iran on Sunday, President Donald Trump announced that his country would block the passage of all ships “entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas.” However, according to early observations from franceinfo on Monday at 7:30 PM, the state of maritime traffic had not fundamentally changed since the imposition of this American super-blockade a few hours earlier.
Iranian ships were still passing through Hormuz on Monday evening. One of the cargo ships from Tehran was tracked by franceinfo. The ship crossed the strait just before 4 pm and around 6:45 pm, it was heading down the Iranian coast towards the Gulf of Oman. As for ships from other countries heading to or leaving Iranian ports, franceinfo continued to observe them on Monday evening. For example, a tanker flying the flag of Aruba arrived at the Iranian port of Shahid Raja at 4:30 pm, half an hour after the start of the American blockade.
As for ships avoiding Iranian ports and thus escaping the American blockade, maritime traffic continued gradually. Around a dozen ships crossed the strait between Sunday evening and Monday evening. They flew the flags of Vietnam, Panama, or the Comoros, countries outside the conflict. All had to follow the two maritime routes set by Iran, two fairly narrow corridors south and north of Larak Island, forcing the ships to sail along the Iranian coasts. This is a way for Tehran to filter traffic. However, two Indian ships passed by sailing along the coast of Oman, south of the strait. These were cargo ships, so they did not carry oil and were less strategic.
At the same time, many ships remain blocked on one side or the other of the strait. There are about 800 in the Persian Gulf, waiting to be able to pass through Hormuz to return to their home port. On the other side, in the Gulf of Oman, several hundred ships are waiting to cross the strait to refuel in oil. For example, French boats still do not pass. Two ships from CMA-CGM are making round trips in the Persian Gulf without being able to cross the strait and return to France.
