October 2026 has been identified as the most perilous month for commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, with a staggering 28 maritime attacks reported.
October has emerged as the deadliest month for commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and nearby waterways, according to data compiled by a Washington-based think tank that has monitored maritime security incidents worldwide since 2017.“October has seen the highest number of ship attacks on record,” said Noam Raydan, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.Raydan, who maintains the institute’s interactive map of shipping incidents, has documented 28 confirmed and reported attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waterways in October. The total number of such incidents has reached 113 since the US-Israeli war with Iran began on February 28.The institute’s data indicates that most attacks recorded in September and October occurred in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the news agency Reuters.
Around 3.5% of global supertanker fleet targeted
The figures broadly correspond with data from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which has recorded 120 incidents across the Strait of Hormuz and the wider middle east since the conflict with Iran began.A Reuters review of the IMO’s records and marine traffic vessel data found that more than 30 supertankers, also known as Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), were damaged in the attacks.
Eleven of these vessels were hit in October alone.Each VLCC can transport approximately 2 million barrels of crude oil. The affected vessels represent around 3.5% of the global VLCC fleet, which comprises more than 900 ships.The number of tankers targeted increased as shipowners showed greater willingness to load cargoes within the Gulf. They were attracted by daily freight rates exceeding $1 million and larger discounts offered by regional oil producers against dated Brent prices.Greece-based consultancy Marisks said October 2026 had become the most intense period for maritime attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz since hostilities escalated in March.It added that 12 ships came under attack between October 5 and October 11, marking the highest weekly total since the conflict began.
Maritime attack figures may be incomplete
According to Raydan, Iran is escalating attacks to hamper the recovery of shipping activity and sustain pressure on global energy markets ahead of the US midterm elections in November.Earlier this month, Reuters reported that Tehran was adopting such tactics, citing two senior Iranian officials.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the British maritime security service, reported 135 incidents linked to the US-Iran conflict as of October 16. However, the agency said a lack of voluntary reporting from shipping companies was making it difficult to establish the full extent of the attacks.UKMTO data also pointed to a sharp increase in damage to commercial vessels caused by attacks during October.