HFI Institute Says UAE-US Oil Operation Through Strait of Hormuz Fails Oil shipments through the strait have dropped to nearly zero levels, the institute said, following Iran's tightening of measures against violators last month. Operation Eshkol Al, planned by the United Arab Emirates with the participation of the United States, includes extracting oil from the Gulf, transporting it through the strait on ferry tankers and transferring it from one vessel to another.