Armed boats attempt to intercept vessel in Strait of Hormuz

Armed boats attempted to stop a vessel near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting an investigation by UK maritime authorities amid the region’s strategic shipping tensions.

Reuters

3 February 2026 at 13:21:03

Armed boats attempt to intercept vessel in Strait of Hormuz

FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz and Iran is seen behind a 3D printed oil pipeline in this illustration taken June 22, 2025.

Dado Ruvic/Reuters

A group of armed boats attempted to intercept a vessel 16 nautical miles (29.6 km) north of Oman, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Tuesday.

The UKMTO said it is investigating the incident, which happened in the inbound Traffic Separation Scheme of the Strait of Hormuz.

Numerous small armed vessels attempted to contact the vessel via VHF radio, but it ignored requests to stop and continued on its planned route, the agency said.

The strait links the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea beyond.

OPEC members Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the strait, mainly to Asia.

Three vessels, two in 2023 and one in 2024, were seized by Iran near or in the strait. Some of the seizures followed U.S. seizures of tankers related to Iran.

-Reporting by Tala Ramadan; Editing by Sharon Singleton/Reuters