The situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains chaotic. Initially, in accordance with the terms of the ceasefire, ships began moving again. Soon afterwards, though, Iran closed the waterway once more after the US claimed it would continue to block vessels sailing to and from Iranian ports.
Regardless, there are still ships moving in and out of the Gulf, either with or with out the permission of the two parties. Focusing on containers, MSC was one of the ship operators that decided to take the risk. Reportedly, it managed to get four container ships and one cruise vessel through, but two vessels are claimed to have been seized by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). These are the 11,700 TEU MSC Francesca and the chartered, Technomar-owned 7,200 TEU Epaminondas. A video on the capture of the last vessel was posted by IRGC and can be found here.
Another container vessel that tried to escape was the 2,500 TEU, Silmar-operated Euphoria. It was fired upon by an Iranian gunboat and was reported to have suffered “heavy damage” to the bridge.
Meanwhile, the US, in turn, seized the Iranian-flagged 5,100 TEU Touska, operated by IRISL, in the Arabian Sea. The vessel was on its way from Port Klang to Bandar Abbas.
Source: DynaLiners 17/26 – 24 April 2026
