Dubai's port of Jebel Ali has significantly reduced operations due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which began on February 28th. The port handled only 374,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in the second quarter of this year, down 90% from the same period last year. Dubai's government-owned DP World is spending $100 million a month to maintain readiness and resume operations quickly if shipping traffic resumes. The article provides a glimpse into DP World's plans for more efficient operations, including a new container-stacking system called "BOXBAY" that can store up to 500,000 TEUs in a single location.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Iran and the US are engaged in a escalating conflict in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global oil shipments. On Sunday, Iran claimed it struck an unmanned US Navy vessel that was trying to enter the strait, but the US military denied this, calling it a "total lie". This incident came after the US military said it had struck three Iranian oil tankers in response to missile attacks on two US Navy warships.
The conflict began with US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28, but since a ceasefire agreement was announced in June, fighting has persisted. The US has adopted a dual-pronged approach, responding militarily to attacks on the strait while also going after foreign financial institutions that handle Iranian money.
Iran's security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, announced that his country would establish a restricted zone outside the Strait of Hormuz, with ships entering the area being placed on a sanctions list. The US has also taken steps to counter Iran's actions, redirecting 92 commercial vessels, disabling three, and boarding two others to ensure compliance with its blockade.
Former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta predicted that the conflict would continue for another six months, saying it was a "forever war in the Middle East" that the US risked becoming mired in. Meanwhile, a report from The Straits Times noted that Iran's leverage in the strait may be waning due to an unprecedented economic squeeze by the US, which has cut state revenues and disrupted shipping.
The conflict has resulted in at least five people killed earlier in the week during a US bombardment of southern Iran. The US naval blockade against Iranian ports remains in place, while Tehran continues to maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz, considered the world's most critical oil chokepoint.
Written for “Iran Strait of Hormuz Conflicts” on 2026-09-08,
grounded in this article and the 62 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but every quote it verified points right, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 6397: score contradicts its own evidence · logged 2026-09-07
Driving through the port and free zone last week, I saw a single crane in operation: A jarring scene for those used to the symphony of ships, trucks, and people moving stuff, some bound for the domestic market, most for Africa, Europe, and the rest of the Gulf.
asserted
I → drive → Gulf
The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed to container shipping since Feb. 28, with all tracked transits down to a handful a day from around 90 before the war.
asserted
Strait → close → war
Berths that normally work more than 80 scheduled services a week sit under raised cranes, the way they rest when there are no ships to work.
asserted
they → work → cranes
The port moved 15.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2024.
asserted
port → move → 2024
In the second quarter of this year, it handled 374,000 TEUs, down 90% from the same period last year.
asserted
it → handle → period
Stranded containers were stacked in nearly every yard I passed, and most tenants have locked up shop.
asserted
tenants → stack → shop
Dubai’s government-owned port operator DP World is spending about $100 million a month — its prewar operating cost — so it can return to full capacity within 48 hours, if normal shipping traffic resumes, a company official told Semafor.
asserted
official → own → Semafor
Beyond the eerie silence of Dubai’s economic engine — the port and connected free zone contribute around a third of the emirate’s GDP — I caught a glimpse of how DP World plans to make its operations here, and globally, more efficient.
asserted
operations → connect → glimpse
By one gate stands “BOXBAY”, a steel tower that stacks containers up to 16 tiers high, each box retrievable without moving another — what the company calls a giant vending machine for containers.
asserted
company → stand → containers
The Jebel Ali prototype has handled nearly 500,000 TEUs in trials, and DP World is spending £170 million ($225 million) on the first full-scale version at its London Gateway port.
asserted
World → handle → port
When Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Dubai’s ruler at the time, began building Jebel Ali in the 1970s, 35 kilometers outside his city, Dubai’s merchants worried the new port would starve the one they already had.
asserted
they → begin → one
Queen Elizabeth II inaugurated it on Feb. 26, 1979, as the largest man-made harbor in the world.
asserted
II → inaugurate → world
It grew into a global trade node.
asserted
It → grow → node
The war has scrambled that network, and cargo is now rerouted overland from Khor Fakkan and Fujairah, on the UAE’s east coast, where trucks queue as long as 12 hours against a 27-minute turnaround at Jebel Ali.
asserted
trucks → scramble → Ali
DP World is building two terminals at Fujairah, outside the strait.
asserted
World → build → strait
While the other facilities give it flexibility, moving cargo overland from Fujairah or Khor Fakkan can be roughly four to five times more expensive than sailing through Hormuz to Jebel Ali, the official said.
asserted
official → give → Ali
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