Around 20,000 seafarers are stranded on ships in the Persian Gulf with no way to leave.
As the stalemate in the Gulf continues, with the maritime exit through the Strait of Hormuz remaining effectively closed, maritime workers are stranded at sea, facing pressures from ship owners, security threats from drones and sea mines, and very few legal protections.
Damien Chevallier, director of the Maritime Safety Division at the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization (IMO), said to CNN, “We have around 20,000 seafarers in the Gulf for now close to eight weeks. It is a humanitarian crisis. We have never faced such a situation.”
Since the war began on February 28, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation and tried to introduce new navigation rules in the Persian Gulf, allowing ships from countries Iran considers "friendly" to pass through the strait in exchange for fees.
But tensions in the Strait of Hormuz are not new and have been escalating since 2019, when multiple international incidents occurred in the vital maritime corridor. With around one-fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas and about 20% of total global oil consumption passing through this narrow waterway, which links the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman, the Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important chokepoints. The region is also a popular tourist destination, with numerous cruise ships also following the strait's busy shipping lanes.
To discover more about the Strait of Hormuz and its importance, click through this gallery.