IMO and Oman Plan Evacuation of 11,000 Seafarers Stranded near Strait of Hormuz

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO), a United Nations agency, has announced a plan to evacuate ships and the about 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Persian Gulf because of the war in West Asia. IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said the large-scale operation would be carried out in cooperation with Iran, Oman, other coastal states, the United States and the maritime industry.

The plan, detailed by the Sultanate of Oman, sets up a temporary maritime corridor with two routes through the Strait of Hormuz — one along the Omani coast and one along the Iranian coast. Because the traditional central traffic route is considered unsafe due to the risk of mines, vessels will use the two alternative routes and must contact the relevant coastal state to confirm transit. Ships will be grouped and given allocated transit days in a phased approach.

The two routes can handle only 20-30 ships a day, compared with around 130 ships that transited the strait daily before the war. Hundreds of ships remain stranded west of the Strait of Hormuz. A designated waiting area in international waters has been created, and shipowners remain responsible for their own risk assessment, with vessels keeping their Automatic Identification System switched on. Pakistan and Qatar have acted as mediators between Iran and the United States.

For aspirants, this connects to the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz (a key oil chokepoint), the role of the IMO, and the impact of West Asia conflicts on global trade and energy security.