Iran War Shipping Update - April 15, 2026

During the Iran War, the Iranian regime’s Ghost Fleet has continued to operate actively — loading cargo, transiting the Strait of Hormuz, and heading east toward its primary buyer, China. The U.S. blockade may now be constraining those exports, as UANI’s shipping updates continue to track the ghost fleet’s illicit maritime movements throughout the conflict.

U.S. Blockade 

On April 7, President Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran. Pakistan mediated ceasefire talks, which President Trump stated was contingent on the “complete, immediate, and safe opening” of the Strait of Hormuz, effectively ending its wartime closure. However, on April 12, after ceasefire talks with Iran ended without an agreement, President Trump announced that the U.S. would initiate a naval blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas effective April 13. U.S. Central Command posted that U.S. forces are “executing the mission to blockade ships entering and departing Iranian ports” on April 14. By blockading vessels calling on Iranian ports, including tankers carrying Iranian oil, the administration aims to cut off the Iranian regime’s major source of revenue. The blockade, now implemented, represents a significant escalation in U.S. enforcement strategy, with implications for global energy markets, regional stability, and the future calibration of U.S. sanctions policy.

Last night, a U.S. destroyer intercepted and diverted two laden tankers attempting to depart Chabahar on April 14, compelling both vessels to reverse course and return to port.

On April 15, there have so far been 19 transits of the Strait of Hormuz, five inbound and 14 outbound, according to Windward. Most of these vessels appear to be reporting their location on AIS, though GPS jamming and potential spoofing makes confirmation difficult.

The continued presence of AIS signals from merchant traffic transiting the Strait of Hormuz is not evidence that the U.S. blockade is ineffective. Rather, it demonstrates that Iran’s attempted disruption of the international strait is being displaced and that freedom of navigation for neutral commerce is being restored. U.S. naval forces are exercising belligerent control primarily in the Gulf of Oman, where the operational focus is on blockade enforcement, visit and search, and diversion of vessels engaged in ingress to or egress from Iranian ports. Neutral merchant shipping engaged in legitimate commerce and not bound to or departing from Iranian ports is not, in itself, the object of interdiction. Priority is instead placed on laden tankers departing Iranian terminals, particularly those carrying crude oil, as these voyages constitute clear egress from the blockaded area and may amount to breach or attempted breach of blockade. 

U.S. Designations on Iranian Oil Smuggling Network

On April 15, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) intensified pressure on Iran’s illicit oil network by sanctioning a network tied to Iranian oil shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, son of the late senior regime official Ali Shamkhani. AURA (IMO 9274563), which was sanctioned on April 15, has been listed on UANI's Ghost Armada since September 2022.  

Status of the Strait of Hormuz

The Strait of Hormuz therefore remains a critical flashpoint in the Iran campaign. Since the start of the conflict, there have been at least 25 commercial vessels hit, plus four near misses.

The escalating risk has created severe congestion and instability across the Persian Gulf’s shipping lanes. Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, about 138 vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz daily.  Since March 1, 2026, marine traffic data shows growing clusters of loitering vessels on both sides of the Strait of Hormuz, with many refraining from transiting due to safety concerns.

On April 8, an unconfirmed map issued by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) outlined a proposed Hormuz traffic separation scheme requiring vessels to coordinate with the IRGC Navy. The latest purported guidance from Iran also warns of anti-ship mines in the main traffic lane, while the IRGC continues to vet traffic based on geopolitical affiliation.

Iran’s formal notice of the Strait of Hormuz transit routes published on April 8 (Source: Iran’s National Security Commission)

OFAC-sanctioned and UANI-listed tankers — alongside some non-sanctioned, ostensibly legitimate vessels — have transited the Strait of Hormuz intermittently switching off their AIS signals. Many have passed the waterway between Larak and Qeshm islands before continuing through the strait, while a handful of others sailed via Omani waters along Oman’s coastline, creating two parallel transit patterns as shipping adapted to the evolving security environment. So far, there have been no openly transiting vessels through international shipping lanes since the conflict began, raising real questions of when usual patterns will resume as the fragile ceasefire holds.

Numerous vessels that have a history of transporting non-Iranian cargoes from the Persian Gulf are now diverting due to heightened security risks and shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz from the Iran war, causing many to seek alternative cargoes in U.S. ports, such as Galveston.

Iranian Oil-Laden Tankers in the Persian Gulf 

UANI has identified at least 34 tankers laden with Iranian oil — primarily crude — currently operating inside the Persian Gulf, west of the Strait of Hormuz.

Map of Iranian oil laden tankers in the Persian Gulf on April 15

Iran-linked Vessels at Chabahar Port, Iran

Iran-linked tankers and cargo vessels are loitering and anchoring outside of the Persian Gulf at Chabahar Port, Iran. On April 11, there were at least 12 Iran-flagged tankers and 10 cargo ships all observed by satellite imagery near Chabahar Port laden with Iranian crude.

Number of Iranian Loadings

Since the outbreak of the conflict, UANI has tracked at least 46 Iranian oil loadings, 26 of which originated from Kharg Island, Iran. These shipments represent approximately 55 million barrels of Iranian oil, generating an estimated revenue of over $4.5 billion for the IRGC, which continues to fund Iran’s active missile and drone programs central to the conflict. This figure is notably higher than usual given the sharp increase in oil prices, including Iranian crude.

On April 15, three tankers were observed loading at Iran’s main petrochemical port, Assaluyeh, in satellite imagery.                                                              

Satellite imagery of three tankers loading at Assaluyeh port, Iran on April 15 
(Credit: ESA Copernicus)

Iran-oil Laden Tankers That Have Left the Persian Gulf

Since the start of the conflict, UANI has observed at least 37 ghost fleet tankers laden with Iranian oil that have left the Persian Gulf — some broadcasting their AIS signals and others operating clandestinely. These tankers are enroute to Malaysia to conduct ship-to-ship (STS) transfers with other ghost fleet vessels bound for China. 

The Iran-flagged tanker DERYA (IMO 9569700) remains in Indian territorial waters, near Jamnagar, India on April 15, openly broadcasting AIS. It is reporting that it is laden with a deep draft of 20 meters. The Iran-flagged tanker FELICITY (IMO 9183934) remains loitering near Jamnagar, India on April 15, also openly broadcasting AIS, after arriving on April 12. Reports indicate these Iranian-oil laden tankers are struggling to discharge cargoes, as Indian refiners consider refusing them amid U.S. sanctions risks. It is also possible that Iranian-flagged merchant ships discharging sanctioned cargo represents a risk to India’s neutral status. 

Iran flagged tankers near Gujarat, India, on April 15 (Credit: Marine Traffic)

Iran-flagged Tankers Globally

UANI has also monitored Iranian-flagged tankers operating beyond the Persian Gulf. Since the conflict began, at least 26 Iranian-flagged tankers have reached Southeast Asian waters bound for the Eastern Outer Port Limits (EOPL) anchorage off Johor, Malaysia. On April 15, the Iran-flagged tankers DAN (IMO 9357729) and HAWK (IMO 9362061), both laden with Iranian crude from Kharg Island, transited the Malacca Strait eastbound. They are both headed for the Malaysian EOPL, where they will then conduct a clandestine Ship-to-Ship (STS) transfers to another tanker bound for China.

Iran flagged tankers transiting the Malacca Strait, on April 15 (Credit: Marine Traffic)

Meanwhile, at least 30 Iran-flagged tankers have begun returning and reporting empty to Iran from the Malaysian EOPL anchorage and Southeast Asian sea lanes, since the start of the conflict. 

Iran-Oil Laden Tankers off the Malaysian Coast

Since the start of the conflict, UANI has recorded 103 Iranian oil laden tankers in the EOPL anchorage, a ghost fleet hotspot approximately 70 km off Malaysia’s coast. All of these tankers have been spotted in satellite imagery.

On April 15, 32 tankers listed on UANI's Ghost Armada were anchored or loitering in the EOPL area with their AIS signals active. Despite the ongoing conflict, it is business as usual for the Iranian oil trade to China, where ghost fleet tankers continue to operate with impunity across Southeast Asia's sea lanes. 

Iran-Flagged Cargo Ships Globally

Two Iran flagged OFAC-sanctioned container ships BEHNAVAZ (IMO 9346548) and BETHA (IMO 9349590) remain at the anchorage outside Zuhai, China. Zuhai Port in China’s Gaolan Island, has been identified in press reports, as linked to supplies of sodium perchlorate, a critical precursor for solid rocket fuel used in ballistic missiles. The port has had nine visits by seven OFAC sanctioned Iranian-flagged container ships since the start of the war.

Two Iran flagged container ships at anchor near Zuhai, China, on April 15 
(Credit: Marine Traffic and ESA Copernicus)

The Iran-flagged bulk cargo ships WARTA (IMO 9465849) and MAHNAM (IMO 9213387) both approached the Singapore Strait on April 15. WARTA, laden with an unknown cargo, departing Sri Racha, Thailand on April 12 is destined for Bandar Imam Khomeini (BIK), Iran, with an estimated arrival time of May 3, according to its AIS signal. Meanwhile, MAHNAM, after departed Dafeng, China, on April 5, is now in ballast condition after delivering its unknown cargo.

Iran flagged bulk carriers approaching the Singapore Strait on April 15 (Credit: Marine Traffic)

The Iran-flagged container ships ARTENOS (IMO 9283021) and AZARGOUN (IMO 9283019), laden with unknown cargoes, joined two Iranian oil laden tankers near Gujarat, India on April 15. Like all Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) containers ships, ARTENOS and AZARGOUN are sanctioned by U.S. OFAC.

Iran flagged container ships and Iran oil laden tankers near Gujarat, India on April 15 
(Credit: Marine Traffic)

The Iran-flagged general cargo ship AREZOO (IMO 9165786) arrived in Penang, Malaysia on April 15.  The vessel appears to have made a visit to Yangon, Myanmar, from April 11-12, after departing Chittagong, Bangledash on April 9. AREZOO is also an IRISL cargo ship and is sanctioned by U.S. OFAC.

Iran flagged cargo ship arriving in Penang, Malaysia on April 15 (Credit: Marine Traffic)