International Maritime Organization says efforts ongoing to restart evacuation of stranded seafarers
The UN’s maritime agency said Friday that since Tuesday, about 115 vessels and 2,500 seafarers have been evacuated from the Strait of Hormuz.
“We have been able to evacuate at least 115 vessels, in the last three and a half days, representing around 2,500 seafarers that have now safely left the Strait of Hormuz,” said Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization.
Dominguez cautioned that the numbers he provided “are not completely final, because I still need some time to verify any transits that have been taking place this morning.”
He said that efforts are continuing to reinitiate the evacuation of stranded seafarers after operations were paused on Thursday due to an attack on a vessel.
The secretary-general said that “as soon as” he gets further confirmation that vessels would not be targeted and that the flow of trade will continue, he is “ready to reinitiate the process of evacuation.”
He said that Iran sent messages warning that using an “unauthorized corridor” would result in “legal sanctions,” adding that he did not know what those sanctions actually were.
The IMO said Thursday that it had paused its evacuation plan for stranded seafarers in the Strait of Hormuz following an attack on a vessel in the Gulf of Oman.
IMO pauses evacuation plan.
“I have been informed of an attack today in the Gulf of Oman. Seafarer safety remains paramount. To ensure coordinated approach & navigational safety, the IMO evacuation plan will be paused until further clarity.”
– @IMOSecGenhttps://t.co/UtvKjTtG5N pic.twitter.com/29m2lMkt1V— International Maritime Organization (@IMOHQ) June 25, 2026
“I have been informed of an attack today in the Gulf of Oman. Seafarer safety remains paramount,” Dominguez said Thursday on X.
“To ensure a coordinated approach and navigational safety, the IMO evacuation plan will be paused until further clarity,” he added.
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The decision came hours after the IMO and Oman announced an evacuation plan for more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the region amid heightened tensions and maritime security concerns.
Earlier Thursday, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) center said a cargo vessel was hit by an unknown projectile off Oman, causing damage to the ship’s bridge. No casualties or environmental damage were reported.
