LONDON, April 17 (Reuters) – The threat posed by mines in parts of the Strait of Hormuz is not fully understood and avoidance of the area by ships should be considered, a U.S. navy advisory said on Friday.
“Status of TSS mine threat is not fully understood. Consider avoidance of that area,” said the advisory sent by the US navy’s US NCAGS agency to mariners and seen by Reuters.
The TSS refers to the so-called Traffic Separation Scheme, which was adopted by the U.N.’s shipping agency in 1968 with agreement of countries in the region, and created a ship routing system that split sailing corridors through Iranian and Omani waters in the strait.
It was not immediately clear whether the advisory was sent before or after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the Strait of Hormuz was open following the agreement of a ceasefire in Lebanon.
(Reporting by Jonathan Saul;Editing by Alison Williams)