The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Arsenio Domínguez, warned this Friday that around 6,000 sailors remain stranded in the Strait of Hormuz due to the conflict that began on February 28 between the United States and Iran, which has kept this key enclave for maritime traffic closed.
"Six months after the start of the conflict in the Middle East, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains unresolved. Thousands of sailors in the region continue to live and work in conditions of high risk and uncertainty. While some ships and their crews have managed to leave the Persian Gulf, up to 400 vessels, with about 6,000 sailors on board, have not been able to depart safely since the conflict began," he stated in a statement.
The IMO Council greenlighted a resolution in July demanding respect for navigation rights and freedoms in accordance with International Law and ensuring that passage through the strait is not "threatened" or "hindered."
In this context, Domínguez has called on the international community to strengthen its "political will" and "cooperation," urging to work with the organization and the rest of the United Nations system to "promote practical solutions that restore freedom of navigation through the strait."
"The deterioration of maritime security worldwide, from the Black Sea to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, harms us all. However, it is particularly distressing for the thousands of innocent sailors affected," he concluded.
So far, the IMO has recorded at least 70 attacks against international vessels, which have resulted in the deaths of 19 sailors, in a scenario of renewed tensions between the parties after the expiration of the 60-day deadline they had set to reach a global agreement to end hostilities.