⚡The International Maritime Organization condemned attacks from the past two days on several commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz and called for immediate restraint, de-escalation, and the provision of a safe route for stranded ships to leave the Persian Gulf.

The organization’s secretary-general said that these attacks have once again put the lives of innocent seafarers at risk, and that no seafarer should face such danger simply because of doing their job.

According to Arsenio Dominguez, hundreds of ships with about 6,000 seafarers have still been stranded since the start of the crisis in the Persian Gulf.

The figure has decreased compared with initial estimates from the war, which cited around 20,000 stranded seafarers; an indication that a phased departure of part of the ships from Hormuz has been carried out, but the route is still neither safe nor normal.

The International Maritime Organization’s departure plan was activated in late June for about 11,000 active seafarers, and some ships were able to pass through the strait. However, fresh attacks have again left psychological pressure on the remaining crews and increased concerns about the security of shipping.