Iranian Supertanker Breaks Through US Blockade Again, Detected in Lombok Strait
JAKARTA – A company monitoring oil shipping reported on Monday that a second Iranian Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) has successfully avoided the US Navy’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. Like the previous vessel, the ship is navigating Indonesian waters towards the Riau Islands.
In a post on X, TankerTrackers.com stated that the supertanker DERYA is currently crossing the Lombok Strait in Indonesia after an attempt to deliver 1.88 million barrels of Iranian crude oil to India in mid-April failed.
“We then saw it continue its journey south after that, while other ships in the area were directed back to Iran by the US Navy. The vessel is currently en route to its meeting point in the Riau Islands,” TankerTrackers added.
The post came a day after TankerTrackers.com reported that the Iranian supertanker HUGE, carrying 1.9 million barrels of oil, had successfully avoided the US Navy and was in the Lombok Strait heading to Riau.
The tracking company also said that around 25 tankers have left Iran carrying crude oil in April. Of that number, seven were redirected back to Iranian ports by the US Navy, while two others were seized by US forces.
The rest have reached their destinations or intended meeting points.
The report comes after Iranian state media claimed on 29 April that at least 52 Iranian ships had broken the US blockade. Meanwhile, the US military stated that it has forced around 41 ships linked to Iran to turn back since the blockade began.
US officials said the blockade has been successful and has cost Iran billions of dollars in revenue. The US claims Iran cannot export oil and is forced to store it until capacity is exhausted and production halts.
Spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry Esmaeil Baghaei emphasised that US President Donald Trump has openly described the seizure of Iranian ships as illegal “piracy” and boldly boasted that “we are acting like pirates”.
In a post on X, Baghaei stated that this is not a verbal slip, but a “direct and incriminating admission of the criminal nature of their actions against international maritime navigation”.
He called on the international community, UN member states, and the UN Secretary-General to “firmly reject the normalisation of such blatant violations of international law.”