UN calls for evacuation of 6,000 stranded seafarers in Strait of Hormuz

The United Nations Human Rights Council urged the urgent evacuation and repatriation of roughly 6,000 sailors trapped on about 400 vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, where a cease‑fire between the United States and Iran has repeatedly broken down. UN human‑rights chief Volker Turk and spokesperson Shabia Mantoo said the crew lack food, water, fuel, medical care, electricity and means to contact families, and warned that at least 17 seafarers have been killed since the conflict began on 28 February. The International Maritime Organization corroborated the figures and highlighted that some ships have been abandoned by owners, leaving dozens of crew without support.

The crisis coincides with renewed hostilities, including a reported missile attack on the merchant vessel Disha, whose 30‑member crew issued a distress call near the eastern entrance to the strait, and a warning from a US military operator that a non‑compliant ship would be fired upon. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has stopped several oil tankers, one of which caught fire, while U.S. forces have resumed a naval blockade of Iranian ports. Oman’s foreign minister has also appealed for the strait to remain open to international shipping.

The UN has called on all parties, ship owners and regional states to ensure safe passage, provide consular assistance, deliver essential supplies and facilitate evacuations, emphasizing that attacks on civilian vessels violate international humanitarian law.