Live updates: US-Iran war; Trump says he ‘did the right thing’ and would ‘never apologize’

Shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz was 17% of the pre-conflict average in the past seven days, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre.

Control of the critical waterway has become the focus of the war recently, with US President Donald Trump saying Thursday that he plans to declare it a US territory after “we finish defeating Iran.” That was met with a swift retort from Tehran, with the deputy foreign minister saying the Strait of Hormuz “cannot be seized with a tweet” or an aircraft carrier.

Only 151 ships made it in or out of the narrow waterway in the past seven days, according to the UKMTO’s latest report Friday.

There have been 56 reports of damage to vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and nearby waters since the US-Iran war began on February 28, the report said. But the tally does not appear to include the latest two attacks reported on Thursday. In a separate update, the UKMTO had reported that a vessel sustained “minor damage” after a drone attack on Thursday. And the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said two of its vessels were attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

The Southern Omani route, an alternative temporary corridor in the strait, remains the highest-risk, accounting for 16 of 18 projectile strike incidents reported by the UKMTO since July 6.

The US naval blockade is still in effect, barring ships from going to or from any Iranian port either inside or outside the strait. However, one Iranian-flagged ship was reported inbound and another outbound through the Strait of Hormuz in the past seven days.

The most common flagged ships to travel through the contested waterway were Panama and Liberia, each with 12 ships making it in or out. No US-flagged vessels were reported.

The most common type of vessel to travel through the strait was the product tanker, which typically transports refined petroleum products.

The latest figures mark a slight improvement from the previous week, when traffic was just 4% of pre-war levels, according to the UKMTO.

More on this: View our interactive on how the war has reshaped the Strait of Hormuz traffic.