Axios reports a US-run corridor along the Omani side moving 15 to 20 tankers in and out nightly under fighter cover, roughly half of prewar volumes, with eight drones and two cruise missiles intercepted Monday.
Two readings get laid out.
Either the escort operation genuinely works and Iran cannot close the strait after all, or the numbers are inflated to steady the markets, since every hull sails dark and none of it can be independently checked.
The skeptical read wins out, with the reasoning that the sheer coordination and overwatch required makes that tempo hard to sustain, and that this week's reporting on what the Pentagon told the president about Bahrain is reason enough to discount official figures.
Then the pipeline answer from an IRGC commander lands on the table.
Wells cannot be moved, gas needs infrastructure that takes years, and every bypass line sits still with a known address.
@wethebrandon
