IMO warns of ‘humanitarian crisis’ for 20,000 stranded seafarers

More than 20,000 seafarers and 15,000 passengers are stranded in the Persian Gulf because of the war in the Middle East and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, International Maritime Organisation (IMO) secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez told AFP.

The UN agency, which oversees maritime safety, said it stood ready to work with all stakeholders to protect crews in the area.

“Beyond the economic impact of these worrying attacks, this is a humanitarian issue. No attack on innocent seafarers is ever justified,” Dominguez said.

He added that the IMO had recorded seven incidents involving ships in the Strait since the first US and Israeli strikes on Iran on Saturday, leaving two people dead and six injured.

Against that backdrop, Dominguez urged shipping companies to exercise extreme caution when operating in the area and called on all sides to step up efforts to de-escalate the crisis so that navigation could return to normal.

The disruption has already hit global shipping flows, with major operators halting vessels bound for the Gulf and diverting routes. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade, had fallen by 90 per cent on Wednesday, according to Kpler data.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday they had “complete” control of the Strait.

Meanwhile, Lloyd’s of London said it was working with the US government’s International Development Finance Corporation on a plan to provide insurance and political risk guarantees for maritime trade in the Gulf.

A Lloyd’s spokesperson said the market was working constructively with US authorities and other stakeholders to ensure it retained its leading role in war-risk insurance.

The Lloyd’s Market Association, which represents all underwriting businesses in the Lloyd’s market, also welcomed US president Donald Trump’s intervention on the issue.

Chief executive Sheila Cameron said that, since March 1, there had been at least 40 ship transits through the Strait of Hormuz.

She added that around 1,000 ships remained in the Gulf and surrounding waters, about half of them oil and gas tankers, with a combined insured value of more than $25 billion.

According to Cameron, most of those vessels are insured in the London market and their cover remains in force.

Insurance broker Marsh said on Wednesday it had met US officials to explore ways of restoring maritime trade, while the London marine insurance market earlier this week widened the area in the Gulf it classifies as high-risk as the conflict escalated.

Trump said on Tuesday that the US Navy could begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait if needed, adding that he had instructed the International Development Finance Corporation to provide political risk insurance guarantees for Gulf shipping.

French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, said on the same day that he was seeking to build a coalition to pool resources, “including military”, to secure sea lanes vital to the global economy.