14 sailors killed and more than 600 ships remain trapped in the Strait of Hormuz

The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, Arsenio Antonio Dominguez, warned of the dangerous repercussions of the current crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, stressing the need to secure navigation traffic and neutralize global waterways. He stressed in firm statements that the maritime shipping sector should not, under any circumstances, be used as a pressure card in any geopolitical conflicts.

In details of the field situation and rescue efforts, the Secretary-General revealed that the organization and the concerned authorities were able, during the past four days, to safely evacuate 150 ships, with about 4,000 sailors on board. Despite this progress, there are still more than 600 trapped ships facing complex conditions inside the strait. As large numbers of ships began to leave the region, the organization issued an urgent and strongly worded call to all captains not to venture into any unapproved navigation routes in order to avoid risks.

The Secretary-General explained that the currently available options for exiting the Strait are limited to two main paths: One of them is subject to the management and control of Iran, while the other is subject to joint control and coordination between the United States and the Sultanate of Oman.

On the security and humanitarian level, the organization expressed its deep regret at the heavy human cost of this crisis, announcing the killing of 14 sailors since the outbreak of current tensions. The organization confirmed that it had begun opening a comprehensive and urgent investigation to determine the circumstances of a targeting incident that occurred on a ship yesterday, immediately after it completed its crossing of the southern navigation route.