First cruise ship transits the Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began
Published on •Updated
Malta-flagged passenger vessel Celestyal Discovery, reportedly sailing with crew only and bound for Oman, departed Dubai on Friday and successfully crossed the Strait of Hormuz, maritime tracking app MarineTraffic showed.
The Celestyal Discovery, which was docked for 47 days, is now expected to arrive in Oman on Saturday, according to the tracker.
First reports from Euronews journalists on the ground on Friday night indicated that cruise ships that were stuck in Gulf ports — two in Doha, of which one is owned by German-based TUI, and one in Abu Dhabi — have since prepared to depart or have left, an apparent sign that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has resumed.
Other cruise ships have been identified on maritime traffic tracking apps as being on the move, with Celestyal Journey leaving the port in Doha also leaving port on Friday night, among a significant number of ships that have embarked on passing the strait after the announcement.
Hours earlier, Iran and the US said the strategic waterway, which has been effectively closed since the beginning of the war on 28 February, will be fully open to commercial traffic for the remainder of the ceasefire.
Traffic through the Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's crude oil and liquefied natural gas supplies transited before the war, has been almost completely blocked for nearly two months.
The current two-week ceasefire is set to expire on 22 April, but Trump has already indicated he would be willing to extend it in light of positive progress towards a resolution.
The US launched its own naval blockade of Iranian ports, which came into effect on Monday, with President Donald Trump warning that any attack ships would be “eliminated” if they attempted to break it.
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