The Strait of Hormuz Is Now a War Zone. Here Is What That Means for the Ocean.

Editor’s Note: Why We Are Featuring Iran Now

Iran is once again dominating headlines.

From widespread public demonstrations that surged across Iran in late 2025 into early this year, to the current escalation and the breaking of war, the country is being discussed globally in the context of politics, conflict, and human suffering. The loss of life and instability unfolding are real and devastating. Nothing in this feature is intended to diminish that reality.

But there is something else that often goes unspoken.

For years, inside and outside of environmental circles, people have quietly asked me a question. Sometimes with curiosity. Sometimes with hesitation. Sometimes almost with guilt.

“What is actually there?”

They were referring to biodiversity.

In today’s world, there is pressure to already know. When the breadth of human knowledge appears to sit at our fingertips, asking basic questions can feel uncomfortable. If a place overlaps with your professional field or your moral concern, you are expected to understand it fully.

Curiosity, however, should never carry shame.

At SEVENSEAS Media, we see questions as bridges. When a region becomes defined only by conflict, it becomes even more important to remember that it is also defined by landscapes, species, ecosystems, culture, and people who have lived in relationship with nature for millennia.

Iran is not only a geopolitical flashpoint. It is a country of vast mountain ranges, ancient forests, wetlands, deserts, coral communities, migratory flyways, and one of the most strategically significant marine corridors in the world. It sits at the intersection of terrestrial and marine biodiversity, connecting ecosystems across Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Indian Ocean.

It is home to coastal communities whose fishing traditions stretch back centuries, to wetlands that host migratory birds crossing continents, and to marine systems that sustain life far beyond their shorelines.

This feature has been in development for some time. In light of current events, we believe it is important to move forward thoughtfully and with care.

Education is not a distraction from suffering. It is part of long term resilience.

At SEVENSEAS Media, we promote education and peace across cultures and living in harmony with nature. We believe that understanding biodiversity can humanize places that are otherwise reduced to headlines. Conservation, at its best, transcends politics and builds shared responsibility for the natural world.

In the articles that follow, we explore the geography of Iran, its terrestrial biodiversity, its migratory importance, and its ocean and coastal ecosystems. We touch on traditional fishing cultures, current pressures, conservation challenges, and the organizations working to protect what remains.

As always, we are not here to simplify complexity. We are here to make space for informed curiosity and careful understanding.

In moments of conflict, it can feel easier to look away. We choose instead to look closer, and to recognize that ecological systems persist regardless of political borders.

This story is developing rapidly. Details may shift as the situation evolves. Last verified: March 3, 2026.

In the early hours of March 1, 2026, the narrow waterway that carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply became something it had never been in modern history: an active battlefield. Following coordinated U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, which began February 28 under the operation name “Epic Fury,” the Strait of Hormuz has descended into a maritime crisis with consequences that will ripple far beyond energy markets.

At least three commercial oil tankers have been struck by projectiles in the waters near the Strait. The Palau-flagged tanker Skylight was hit five nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman, injuring four crew members and forcing the evacuation of all twenty aboard. The crude carrier MKD Vyom took a projectile above the waterline that sparked an engine room fire. A third vessel, the Sea La Donna, also reported being attacked. Maritime authorities have noted that none of these vessels had any obvious military affiliation, a detail that underscores the indiscriminate nature of the threat now facing merchant shipping.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has issued radio warnings via VHF broadcasting that no ships are permitted to transit the Strait. Although Tehran has not declared a formal blockade, the practical effect has been devastating. Tanker traffic through the corridor has collapsed by approximately 70%, according to vessel tracking data from Windward Maritime Intelligence. More than 150 tankers, including crude oil carriers and liquefied natural gas vessels, have dropped anchor in open Gulf waters rather than risk the crossing. At least 40 very large crude carriers, each holding around two million barrels of oil, are now idling inside the Persian Gulf.

The response from the global shipping industry has been swift and unprecedented. Maersk, the world’s largest container shipping company, suspended all vessel crossings through the Strait until further notice. CMA CGM activated emergency security measures, ordering all Gulf-bound vessels to shelter and rerouting ships via the Cape of Good Hope, adding roughly 15 to 20 days to transit times. Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, and several Japanese shipping giants have followed suit. The World Shipping Council issued a statement emphasizing that seafarers must not be targeted or placed at risk by armed conflict.

The insurance market has effectively sealed the door that military action left ajar. Steamship Mutual issued a formal cancellation of war risk coverage for the Persian Gulf and adjacent waters, effective 72 hours from March 1. Without insurance, even willing operators cannot legally sail. The Joint Maritime Information Center has elevated the regional maritime risk level to “CRITICAL,” its highest classification, warning that further attacks are almost certain.

On the military side, the U.S. has reported destroying at least nine Iranian warships in the Gulf of Oman, with operations continuing. These sunken vessels now sit on the seafloor of one of the world’s most ecologically fragile marine environments, carrying fuel bunkers, lubricants, and munitions that will corrode over time.

Brent crude surged approximately 10% to around $80 per barrel within hours of the first strikes, up from roughly $73 before the weekend. Analysts at JPMorgan and Barclays have warned that prices could spike to $100 or higher if the disruption persists. For an ocean that already bears the weight of the world’s heaviest shipping traffic, the consequences of this crisis extend well beyond barrels and balance sheets.

SEVENSEAS will continue to follow this story as it develops, with particular attention to the marine environmental impacts that are already unfolding beneath the headlines. In the articles that follow, we examine what this conflict means for the Persian Gulf’s irreplaceable marine ecosystem, and what ordinary people can do to prepare for the ripple effects that are heading their way.

Written by: Junior Thanong Aiamkhophueng

Attribution: This article draws on maritime intelligence reporting from gCaptain’s 36-hour operational analysis of the Strait of Hormuz crisis; Windward Maritime AI’s 48-hour intelligence breakdown on vessel tracking and AIS data; Kpler market intelligence on oil flow disruption and commodity pricing; Euronews and France 24 coverage of the tanker attacks near Khasab, Oman; Al Jazeera’s analysis of IRGC radio warnings and commercial shipping suspension; the Joint Maritime Information Center’s CRITICAL-level threat assessment; Axios reporting on U.S. naval operations under Operation Epic Fury; Bloomberg coverage of tanker anchorage patterns and insurance withdrawal; and the World Shipping Council’s statement on seafarer safety. Strait of Hormuz naval vessel photo by Sahar Al Attar/AFP via Getty Images. For further reading, visit gCaptain, Windward Maritime Intelligence, and the Joint Maritime Information Center.