Geneva.- More than 6,000 seafarers from some 400 vessels remain trapped in the Strait of Hormuz after failing to be evacuated during the ceasefire between Iran and the United States, the UN Human Rights Office recalled, calling for urgent measures to protect them and alleviate their situation.
Many of them “have remained on board their ships, forced to fend for themselves, without food, water, fuel, medical care, electricity, or means to communicate with their families,” noted the UN office spokesperson, Shabia Mantoo, at a press conference this Friday.
In addition, the spokesperson specified that at least nine vessels with 93 crew members have been abandoned by their owners since the start of the war, and recalled that at least 17 sailors have died due to hostilities since the beginning of the conflict on February 28.
The UN also warns of the risks in the Black Sea
In light of this situation, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has urged States, shipowners, and other relevant actors to urgently ensure the protection of the stranded seafarers, with measures such as effective access to consular assistance and essential supplies.
The organization also states that safe passage must be facilitated to evacuate some seafarers currently “facing prolonged isolation and confinement in a conflict zone, with uncertainty about their safety and the possibility of disembarking, which poses a serious risk to their physical and mental well-being.”
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As the United Nations office recalls, maritime traffic professionals also suffer in the Black Sea and its neighboring Sea of Azov, where in the context of the war in Ukraine there have also been attacks against civilian vessels.
The spokesperson has confirmed that at least four attacks against civilian vessels have been verified in the Odesa region this month, in which 34 sailors were killed or injured.
