The United Nations has called for the urgent evacuation and repatriation of around 6,000 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz as fighting in the Middle East continues to disrupt one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.
According to AFP, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, appealed to countries involved in the conflict to work together to protect the stranded sailors, warning that they are facing a “dire humanitarian and human rights crisis.”
Speaking in Geneva on Friday, UN human rights spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said the International Maritime Organization estimates that at least 6,000 seafarers remain aboard hundreds of vessels unable to leave the strategic waterway despite the ceasefire.
“Parties to the conflict should urgently work to facilitate safe passage for stranded seafarers to safely evacuate and disembark, as well as ensure the delivery of critical supplies,” Mantoo said.
She stressed that attacks on civilian vessels violate international humanitarian law and must end immediately.
Türk also urged governments, shipowners and other relevant stakeholders to provide stranded crews with consular assistance, essential supplies, and support for their evacuation and repatriation.
The appeal came as tensions escalated after the United States carried out fresh strikes on Iran on Friday following attacks by Tehran-backed Houthi rebels on oil tankers in the Red Sea.
The renewed hostilities pushed global crude oil prices above $100 per barrel, raising concerns over energy supplies and international shipping.
While the US military maintained that the Strait of Hormuz remains open to commercial traffic, Iran has continued attacks on tankers using the route, reportedly seeking to force vessels to pay for safe passage.
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global shipping lane through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passed before the conflict intensified.
