Reports say a merchant vessel has been attacked off Oman just a day after Oman and the IMO released a navigation framework aimed at evacuating more than 10,000 seafarers stuck in the Middle East Gulf
The UK military and a maritime intelligence organisation have reported an attack on a merchant ship off the coast of Oman, on the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Royal Navy’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) Centre said the master of a cargo vessel reported an attack, with the vessel “hit on the starboard side by an unknown projectile, causing damage to the bridge”.
The vessel’s location was listed as 7.5-nautical miles southeast of Dahit, Oman, and the master reported no casualties or environmental impact.
Maritime security and intelligence firm Vanguard Tech named the vessel as Singapore-flagged container shipEver Lovely.
Shipping database Equasis lists the vessel’s owners as Evergreen Line. The 2015-built, 9,532 TEU vessel is not listed as being under sanctions.
Riviera has contacted representatives for Evergreen Line for a statement.
The attack comes a day after IMO and the Sultanate of Oman released a phased evacuation framework to allow vessels and their crews to make a “gradual and controlled” exit from the Middle East Gulf.
In response to the attack, IMO said it has paused its operation to move ships out of the Gulf and through the Strait of Hormuz “pending further clarity” as part of a statement attributed to IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez.
“Following the launch of the IMO’s evacuation plan, through which several vessels have already been successfully evacuated, I have decided to temporarily pause its implementation in order to reconfirm that the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and all those in the region,” Mr Dominguez said.
“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. 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.”
According to the IMO, the evacuation framework does not represent a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz’s normal Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS).
The organisation said the temporary vessel evacuation framework aims to facilitate the safe departure of hundreds of merchant ships and thousands of seafarers stranded inside the Middle East Gulf amid continuing security and navigational concerns in the Strait of Hormuz.
On 24 June, another maritime security firm, Ambrey, reported an incident in which a Panama-flagged product tanker was instructed to divert course by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGC) whilst underway 13.8 nautical miles southeast of Sirik, Hormozgan province, Iran.
Ambrey reported that the vessel was en route southbound from Mesaieed, Qatar, to Karachi, Pakistan, when it was hailed by the IRGC over VHF at approximately 14:35 UTC.
“The IRGC instructed the vessel to abort its transit and divert course to the ’north of Larak Island’, where it would ’stop here and wait for permission’. The IRGC threatened the vessel by stating ’you are in range of my missiles and maybe fire on you’.
The vessel had transited eastbound via the Iranian route, north of the TSS, and had AIS on at the time of its transit. The vessel subsequently began to drift in the area of interest,” Ambrey’s report said.
IMO said itsframework relies on temporary routeing arrangements outside the existing TSS, which remains unsafe for navigation, according to authorities. Two emergency corridors have been established outside the normal traffic management structure, including an Oman-authorised route south of the existing separation scheme for eastbound transits.
In publishing its framework, IMO stressed that vessels should not move until told to do so and should not initiate contact with any authority.
“Vessels do not need to initiate contact,” IMO said in a frequently asked questions resource. “Do not move. Wait to be contacted. Strictly follow instructions issued by relevant coastal States.”
Shipping lobby group BIMCO’s Chief Security Officer Jakob Larsen said the organisation encourages shipowners to take the recent developments into consideration when assessing risks associated with transiting the Strait.
“The situation underscores the importance of clear and unambiguous agreements between the US and Iran regarding a resumption of maritime traffic through the Strait. The wording of the US-Iran MoU is currently not sufficiently clear,” Mr Larsen said.
The navigation warnings also underscore that shipowners and masters remain responsible for conducting independent voyage risk assessments before participating in the operation. Vessels must maintain continuous AIS transmissions and, where applicable, Long-Range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) reporting throughout the transit.
Authorities also cautioned that vessel movements may be suspended at any time for safety, security or naval deconfliction purposes.
The IMO said it will maintain oversight of the evacuation process and provide daily reporting on the number of vessels successfully departing the region under the framework as efforts continue to reduce the number of ships and seafarers stranded inside the Middle East Gulf.
IMO’s latest transit figures, from 24 June show 66 vessel transits, a number far higher than any day of confirmed transits since the US and Israel launched aerial strikes on Iran on 28 February and Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz in response.
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez was scheduled to have a press briefing on the Strait of Hormuz around the time the incident was reported. That briefing has been postponed “until further notice” and “due to urgent matters”.
The US and Iran on 18 June signed a memorandum of understanding committing all sides in the war to an immediate and permanent halt to military operations on all fronts.
If the deal holds, the contested Strait of Hormuz would reopen for transit by commercial vessels within 30 days. It remains unclear whether tolls will become a feature of the passage at a later time, with Iran claiming it will charge fees after 60 days, but it appears there will be a toll-free period of travel for vessels.
Both sides have 60 days to reach a final deal that would then be endorsed by a binding UN Security Council resolution.
