Foreign Relations

U.S. Runs Covert Hormuz Tanker Corridor Moving 10 Million Barrels of Oil a Day

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Courtroom-sketch editorial illustration of an Omani flag flying from a tall pole above a breakwater of stacked concrete tetrapods in the left foreground, with a laden oil tanker and a second escort vessel silhouetted in the misty haze on the open water to the right, drawn in warm ochre and slate-blue chalk and pastel strokes with cross-hatching on sepia newsprint.

Two U.S. officials said the American military has quietly established a nightly shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, moving about 10 million barrels of oil a day, roughly half the pre-war volume, back into global markets. Between 15 and 20 tankers enter and exit each night through a southern channel off Oman, directed by a task force run from Fort Bragg and protected by U.S. fighter jets. A two-week Central Command campaign degraded Iranian radar and maritime surveillance, and U.S. forces shot down eight Iranian drones and two cruise missiles this week. One official said the Revolutionary Guard can be a nuisance but does not control the strait.

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