IMO: 115 ships and 2,500 seafarers evacuated from the Strait of Hormuz

The IMO had halted the evacuation plan it launched in the region 3 days ago following an attack on a cargo ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez made a statement to the press regarding the process for evacuating ships and seafarers stranded in the Gulf region during the conflicts between the US-Israel and Iran.

While stating that efforts are underway to restart the program for the evacuation of seafarers stranded in the region, Dominguez reported that a total of 115 ships and 2,500 seafarers have been evacuated as part of the operations that began on Tuesday.

Attack on a ship off the coast of Oman

The IMO had launched a program for the evacuation of ships and more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Gulf due to restrictions on commercial ship transits in the Strait of Hormuz following the war between the US and Israel and Iran that began on February 28. The program was suspended yesterday following reports that a cargo ship off the coast of Oman had been attacked.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) stated in a release yesterday that a ship had been struck 7.5 nautical miles southeast of the port of Dahit, Oman. Unnamed US officials claimed that Iran had opened fire on the Singapore-flagged ship Ever Lovely.

Evacuation of ships stranded in the strait

Under the plan launched by the IMO on Tuesday for the evacuation of more than 11,000 seafarers, it was announced that two routes would be used under US surveillance, one through Iranian waters and the other through Omani waters. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps warned in a statement yesterday that safe passage through the strait would only be possible via routes determined by Iran and that action would be taken against ships that do not comply with this rule.

News Source: 12punto