Operational Update: Middle East Transport Disruptions

‍Air freight impacts

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• Full closures: Kuwait (KWI) and Bahrain (BAH) remain closed with no cargo capacity
• Suspended cargo operations: Qatar (DOH)
• Limited operations: UAE (DXB/AUH), Israel (TLV), Lebanon (BEY)
• Primary alternatives: Muscat (MCT), Amman (AMM), Addis Ababa (ADD)

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OPERATIONAL & MARKET IMPACTS

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With air freight, there has been a significant capacity reduction across the entire Gulf region. Flights are being rerouted due to airspace restrictions and elevated security risks with 48–72-hour backlogs at major hubs leading to increased reliance on fewer, high-demand air gateways.

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‍Air freight rates are sharply rising due to constrained capacity with longer transit times occurring as a result of routing complexity and congestion into the region.‍

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‍Ocean freight impacts‍

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Strait of Hormuz

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Effectively closed to most Western commercial shipping with limited, controlled transit for select nations only. Vessels are currently stranded or unable to enter or exit ports within the Gulf region.

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Red Sea/Suez Canal

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Continued instability and vessel targeting. Carriers are rerouting through the Cape of Good Hope.

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OPERATIONAL & MARKET IMPACTS

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Transit times for ocean cargo into the region have increased to 14-21+ days with global vessel capacity reduced due to longer routing options. Gulf ports (Jebel Ali, Hamad, and Kuwait) are inaccessible for new cargo flows.

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Emergency surcharges and fuel adjustments are currently in place with global schedule reliability declining. War-risk insurance has been significantly elevated or completely withdrawn.

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‍Ground freight impacts

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There is an increased dependence on overland transport to bypass both maritime and air disruptions in the region. Border crossings remain open but are severely congested and unpredictable.

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Active inland corridors:

• UAE – Saudi Arabia
• Jordan – Iraq

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OPERATIONAL & MARKET IMPACTS

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Extended transit times in the Middle East are occurring due to increased security checks, queue delays, and limited throughput.

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What you need to know

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ICAT is actively monitoring these developments and will continue to provide important updates regarding shipping impacts across the Gulf Region.

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With the current unrest in the Middle East:

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• Routing flexibility is critical with traditional lanes no longer reliable
• Transit times should be expected to extend significantly across all modes
• Capacity is severely constrained and early planning and booking are critical
• Costs will remain elevated due to fuel, insurance, and rerouting
• Conditions remain fluid with continuous changes in airspace and port access highly likely

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ICAT continues to actively manage this evolving situation and will continue to support clients through our real-time control tower oversight, dynamic routing and contingency planning, secured capacity across key alternative hubs, and on-the-ground coordination in these high-risk and restricted environments.

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