UN suspends Strait of Hormuz evacuation after Iran targets cargo ship, US officials say

Attack on a civilian vessel

A Singapore-flagged container ship, identified as the Ever Lovely, was struck by a projectile on its starboard side while attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz, the British navy agency UKMTO reported. The incident occurred 7.5 nautical miles southeast of Oman’s port of Dahit. Two US officials told Reuters that Iran was responsible for the attack. One maritime security source told the same agency that the ship was likely targeted by a drone, though the exact weapon remains unconfirmed. The vessel suffered material damage but no casualties were reported, and it continued its passage through the strait after the impact.

I have been informed of an attack today in the Gulf of Oman on a vessel which passed through the Strait of Hormuz. This vessel did not transit under IMO’s evacuation framework.

IMO pauses evacuation plan

The UN shipping agency had launched the voluntary evacuation initiative only two days earlier, on 23 June, aiming to move hundreds of stranded ships and thousands of seafarers out of the Gulf. Two routes were offered: one through Iranian waters and another through Omani waters under US oversight. By the morning of 25 June, 57 ships carrying an estimated 1,100 seafarers had already transited under the framework. Following the attack, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez announced an immediate suspension of the operation until the necessary safety guarantees could be reconfirmed.

I have always reiterated that the safety of the seafarers remains paramount. Therefore, to ensure a coordinated approach and navigational safety, the evacuation plan will be paused until further clarity is obtained.

Diplomatic backdrop and the 60-day arrangement

The episode unfolds less than a week after Washington and Tehran agreed to a 14-point deal to end hostilities from the US-Israel war against Iran. The accord includes an Iranian commitment to use “best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days”. On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and his Omani counterpart Badr al-Busaidi stressed the need for coordination on maritime traffic and endorsed temporary measures set for that same period. However, Tehran has repeatedly stated it plans to collect maritime service fees for crossing the strait, a move fiercely opposed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is currently touring the Gulf and insisted the strait remains an international waterway.

No country is allowed to impose tolls on the Strait of Hormuz.

Shipping traffic and the road to functional normality

Hundreds of ships and roughly 11,000 sailors have been stuck in the Gulf since February, when Iranian threats and attacks followed by a US blockade of Iranian ports brought commercial traffic to a near halt. Data provider Windward noted earlier this week that traffic volumes were approaching “functional normality”, reporting more outbound than inbound transits, with China as the main destination for oil-exporting vessels. Before the war, the strait routinely saw more than 100 daily passages. On Wednesday, analytics firm Kpler counted around 70 transits, a sign of partial recovery that the latest attack now threatens.